L I  B  RARY 

.   OF   THE 
.V  N  ty  ER5  ITY 
Of    ILLl  NOIS 


298 
B4.3h 


\ 


^^oia  uiBto:RicJX  bvrvbh' 


NOTE    BY   THE    PUBLISHERS. 


In  oflfering  the  following  work  to  the  public,  we 
think  it  not  improper  to  make  a  few  observations 
respecting  the  author  and  our  connection  with 
him. 

We  became  aware,  through  the  medium  of  the 
newspapers,  that  General  Bennett  was  about  to  pub- 
lish a  work  containing  his  disclosures  respecting 
Joe  Smith  and  the  Mormons.  Meeting  him  in  New 
York,  and  being  satisfied,  from  our  intercourse  with 
him,  that  he  deserved  our  confidence,  we  made 
arrangements  with  him  to  publish  the  book  he  was 
preparing.  Daring  its  preparation  and  passage 
through  the  press,  we  have  been  almost  constantly 
in  his  society,  and  have  seen  him  for  a  long  time 
under  a  variety  of  circumstances.  The  result  of 
our  observations  has  been,  that  we  place  the  most 
implicit  reliance  upon  his  veracity,  and  are  perfectly 
convinced  that  he  is  a  gentleman  of  strict  honor,  and 
of  very  considerable  acquirements  and  information. 

In  regard  to  the  statements  he  has  made  in  the 
following  pages,  we  cannot,  of  course,  say  any  thing 
upon  our  personal  knowledge ;  but  we  know,  from 
our  own  inspection,  that  the  documents,  affidavits, 


11  '  NOTE   BY   THE    PUBLISHER* 

and  certificates,  he  has  inserted  therein,  are  genuine  ; 
and  most  of  the  letters,  at  least  those  of  a  recent 
date,  came  through  the  post-office  into  our  hands, 
and  were  by  us  given  to  General  Bennett,  who  in- 
variably submitted  them  to  om*  inspection. 

We  can  also  state  that  we  have  seen  numerous 
letters  from  Nauvoo,  written  by  respectable  persons, 
who,  we  have  learnt  from  the  public  papers,  reside 
at  Nauvoo,  and  who  state  things  which  corrobo- 
rate, in  all  particulars,  the  disclosures  of  General 
Bennett. 

Our  motive  in  publishing  this  work  is  to  let  the 
public  be  informed  of  the  true  character  of  these 
pretended  Mormon  Saints,  which  we  firmly  and 
conscientiously  believe  to  be  truly  set  forth  in 
General  Bennett's  work,  and  in  colors  not  height- 
ened or  exaggerated. 

As  a  true  exposition,  therefore,  of  Mormon  Faith 
and  Practice,  we  commend  it  to  the  serious  and 
impartial  attention  of  the  public. 

EMERSON   LELAND, 
WILLARD  J.  WHITING 


^.     ty^^.'-z.'^- 


vtijSM.  O/'DiElM  ©.^]gMMi^^M< 


THE 


HISTORY  OF  THE  SAINTS ; 


OR, 


AN    EXPOSE 


OF 


JOE   SMITH    AND    MORMONISM. 


BY 


JOHN    C.    BENNETT. 


THIRD     EDITION. 


BOSTON: 

LELAND   &.  WHITING,   71  WASHINGTON   ST. 

NEW  YORK:    BRADBURY,  SODEN,  &  CO.,  127  NASSAU  STREET. 

CINCrNNATI:   E.  S.  NORRIS  &   CO.,  247  MAIN  STREET. 


1842. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1842,  by 

John  C.  Bennett, 
In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  Massachusetts. 


WM.   WHITE    AND    H.    P.    LEWIS,    PRINTERS, 

MINOT'3    BUII.DINO, 

Over  Boston  Type  and  Slereotype  Foundry 


PREFACE 


I  HAVE  been  induced  to  prepare  and  publish  the 
following  work  by  a  desire  to  expose  the  enormous 
iniquities  which  have  been  perpetrated  by  one  of 
the  grossest  and  most  infamous  impostors  that  ever 
appeared  upon  the  face  of  the  earth,  and  by  many 
of  his  minions,  under  the  name  and  garb  of  Religion, 
and  professedly  by  the  direct  will  and  command  of 
Almighty  God. 

My  facilities  for  doing  what  I  have  undertaken  are 
as  great  as  could  possibly  be  desired.  For  eighteen 
months  I  was  living  with  the  Mormons  at  their 
chief  city,  and  possessed  the  confidence  of  the 
Prophet  himself,  and  of  his  councillors.  I  was, 
indeed,  from  an  early  period,  one  of  their  First 
Presidents,  who,  after  the  Prophet,  are  the  rulers 
of  the  Church.  This  gave  me  access  to  all  their 
secret  lodges  and  societies,  and  enabled  me  to  be- 
come perfectly  familiar  with  the  doings  and  designs 
of  the  whole  Church. 

This  book  contains  a  full  and  accurate  account 
of  my  motives  for  joining  them,  and  of  the  discov- 
eries which  I  made  among  them,  illustrated  and 
confirmed  by  a  variety  of  documents,  both  public 
and  private. 


^  r>r^  •'3    T  i-®^ 


4  PREFACE. 

I  have  not,  I  can  fearlessly  assert,  exaggerated 
the  facts  I  have  here  presented  to  the  world,  though 
I  have,  as  they  richly  deserve,  shown  them  up  with 
an  unsparing  hand. 

I  have  been  obliged  to  insert  much  personal 
matter,  and  many  testimonials  respecting  myself, 
in  consequence  of  the  violent  and  scurrilous  attacks 
made  upon  me  through  the  public  papers  by  the 
Impostor  and  his  emissaries.  This,  I  trust,  the 
reader  will  not  impute  to  egotism,  but  to  its  real 
cause  —  a  desire  to  strengthen  my  statements  against 
the  opposition  which  I  am  certain  they  will  en- 
counter. 

In  conclusion,  I  would  commend  to  the  candid 
and  earnest  attention  of  every  patriotic  and  religious 
person  the  statement  I  have  made ;  and,  with  the 
assurance  that  I  have  told  the  truth,  and  nothing 
but  the  truth,  though  by  no  means  the  whole  truth, 
entreat  them  to  use  all  their  influence  and  exertions 
to  arrest  and  quell  the  Mormon  Monster  in  his 
career  of  imposture,  iniquity,  and  treason. 

The  haste  with  which  I  have  necessarily  written 
my  book  will  be  my  apology  to  the  critics  for  its 
defects  of  style  and  arrangement.  I  have  been 
more  solicitous  about  the  matter  than  the  manner 
of  it. 


THE 


HISTORY  OF   THE    SAINTS 


REASONS  FOR  JOINING  THE  MORMONS. 

It  is,  of  course,  necessary  for  me  to  give  some  expla- 
nation of  the  reasons  which  led  me  to  join  the  Mormons, 
and  of  my  motives  for  remaining  so  long  in  connection 
with  them.  I  am  happy  to  have  it  in  my  power  to  do  this 
easily  and  satisfactorily. 

I  find  that  it  is  almost  universally  the  opinion  of  those 
who  have  heard  of  me  in  the  eastern  part  of  the  United 
States,  that  I  united  myself  to  the  Mormons  from  a  con- 
viction of  the  truth  of  their  doctrines,  and  that  I  was,  at 
least  for  some  time,  a  convert  to  their  pretended  religion. 
This,  however,  is  a  very  gross  error.  I  never  believed  in 
them  or  their  doctrines.  This  is,  and  indeed  was,  from  the 
first,  well  known  to  my  friends  and  acquaintances  in  the 
western  country,  who  were  well  aware  of  my  reasons  for 
connecting  myself  with  the  Prophet ;  which  reasons  I  will 
now  proceed  to  state. 

My  attention  had  been  long  turned  towards  the  move- 
ments and  designs  of  the  Mormons,  with  whom  I  had 
become  pretty  well  acquainted,  years  before,  in  the  state  of 
Ohio ;  and  after  the  formation  of  their  establishment  at 
Nauvoo,  in  1839,  the  facts  and  reports  respecting  them, 
which  I  continually  heard,  led  me  to  suspect,  and,  indeed, 
believe,  that  their  leaders  had  formed,  and  were  preparing  to 
execute,  a  daring  and  colossal  scheme  of  rebellion  and  usur- 
pation throughout  the  North-Western  States  of  the  Union. 
It  was  to  me  evident  that  temporal,  as  well  as  spiritual, 
empire  was  the  aim  and  expectation  of  the  Prophet  and 
1  • 


b  HISTORY   OF   THE    SAINTS. 

his  cabinet.  The  documents  that  will  hereafter  be  intro- 
duced, will  clearly  show  the  existence  of  a  vast  and  deep- 
laid  scheme,  upon  their  part,  for  conquering  the  states  of 
Ohio,  Indiana,  Illinois,  Iowa,  and  Missouri,  and  of  erecting 
upon  the  ruin  of  their  present  governments  a  despotic 
military  and  religious  empire,  the  head  of  which,  as  emperor 
and  pope,  was  to  be  Joseph  Smith,  the  Prophet  of  the 
Lord,  and  his  ministers  and  viceroys,  the  apostles,  high- 
priests,  elders,  and  bishops,  of  the  Mormon  church. 

The  fruition  of  this  hopeful  project  would,  of  course, 
have  been  preceded  by  plunder,  devastation,  and  blood- 
shed, and  by  all  the  countless  horrors  which  invariably 
accompany  civil  war.  American  citizens  could  not  be 
expected  to  stand  quietly  by,  and  suffer  their  governments 
to  be  overthrown,  their  religion  subverted,  their  wives  and 
children  converted  into  instruments  for  a  despot's  lust  and 
ambition,  and  their  property  forcibly  appropriated  to  the 
use  and  furtherance  of  a  base  imposture.  The  Mormons 
would,  of  course,  meet  with  resistance  as  soon  as  their 
intentions  became  evident ;  and  so  great  was  already  their 
power,  and  so  rapidly  did  their  numbers  increase,  that  the 
most  frightful  consequences  might  naturally  be  expected 
to  ensue,  from  an  armed  collision  between  them  and  the 
citizens  who  still  remained  faithful  to  the  God  and  the 
laws  of  their  fathers. 

These  reflections  continually  occurred  to  me,  as  I  ob- 
served the  proceedings  of  the  Mormons,  and,  at  length, 
determined  me  to  make  an  attempt  to  detect  and  expose 
the  movers  and  machinery  of  the  plot. 

I  perceived  that  it  would  be  useless  to  undertake  this 
by  open  opposition.  So  great  and  complete  was  the  con- 
trol that  the  Prophet  had  established  over  the  souls  of  his 
followers,  that  very  little  of  his  vile  proceedings  could  be 
made  known  from  the  confessions  or  testimony  of  his  sub- 
ordinates. Even  if  one  or  two  did  testify  to  any  particular 
acts  of  wickedness,  such  were  the  address  and  influence  of 
Smith,  that  he  would,  without  difficulty,  bring  forward  any 
required  number  of  witnesses,  who  would  perjure  them- 
selves in  direct  contradiction  of  his  adversaries. 

It  at  length  occurred  to  me  tliat  the  surest  and  speediest 
way  to  overthrow  the  Impostor,  and  expose  his  iniquity  to 


REASONS    FOR   JOINING    THE    MORMONS.  7 

the  world,  would  be  to  profess  myself  a  convert  to  his  doc- 
trines, and  join  him  at  the  seat  of  his  dominion.  I  felt 
confident  that  from  my  standing  in  society,  and  the  offices 
I  held  under  the  state  of  Illinois,  I  should  be  received 
by  the  Mormons  with  open  arms ;  and  that  the  course  I 
was  resolved  to  pursue  would  enable  me  to  get  behind  the 
curtain,  and  behold,  at  my  leisure,  the  secret  wires  of  the 
fabric,  and  likewise  those  who  moved  them. 

I  was  quite  aware  of  the  danger  I  ran,  should  I  be  sus- 
pected or  detected  by  the  Mormons ;  and  I  also  anticipated 
the  probability  of  being  received  by  many  of  my  fellow- 
citizens  with  disbelief  and  obloquy,  when  the  time  came  to 
throw  oif  the  mask,  and  proclaim  to  the  world  the  dis- 
coveries I  felt  certain  I  should  make.  But  none  of  these 
things  deterred  me.  Impelled  by  a  determination  to  save 
my  country  and  my  countrymen  from  the  evils  which 
menaced  them  through  the  machinations  of  the  Prophet, 
I  was  rendered  insensible  to  the  risk  I  incurred.  There 
was,  it  was  evident,  no  other  way  of  thwarting  the  Im- 
postor and  his  myrmidons,  and  the  plan  I  proposed  to  my- 
self could  not  possibly,  so  far  as  I  could  foresee,  fail  of 
complete  success. 

I  found  in  history  a  distinguished  example  of  a  some- 
what parallel  case, —  that  in  which  Napoleon,  for  the 
furtherance  of  the  views  of  the  French  government  upon 
Egypt  and  the  East,  had  nominally  adopted  the  Moslem 
creed.  The  following  is  the  passage  in  his  Life  to  which 
I  refer  :  — 

"  Buonaparte  entertained  the  strange  idea  of  persuadinjr  the 
Moslems  that  he  himself  pertained  in  some  sort  to  their  religion, 
being  an  envoy  of  the  Deity,  sent  on  earth,  not  to  take  away,  but  to 
confirm  and  complete,  the  doctrines  of  the  Koran,  and  the  mission 
of  Mahomet.  He  used,  in  executing  this  purpose,  tlie  inflated 
language  of  the  East,  the  more  easily  that  it  corresponded,  in  its 
allegorical  and  amplified  style,  witii  his  own  natural  tone  of  com- 
position ;  and  he  hesitated  not  to  join  in  the  external  ceremonial  of 
the  Mahommedan  religion,  that  his  actions  might  seem  to  confirm 
his  words.  The  French  general  celebrated  the  feast  of  the  Prophet, 
as  it  recurred,  with  some  Sheik  of  eminence,  and  joined  in  the 
litanies  and  worship  enjoined  by  the  Koran.  He  affected,  too,  the 
language  of  an  inspired  follower  of  the  faith  of  Mecca,  of  wliich 
the  following  is  a  curious  example  :  — 

"  On  entering  the  sepulchral  chamber  in  the  pyramid  of  Cheops, 
'  Glory  be  to  Allah/  said  Buonaparte;  '  there  is  no  God  but  God, 


8  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

and  Mahonimod  is  his  prophet; ' — a  confession  of  faith  which  is  in 
itself  a  declaration  of  Islaniism. 

"  '  Thou  hast  spoken  like  the  most  learned  of  the  prophets,'  said 
the  Mufti,  who  accompanied  him. 

"  ■  1  can  command  a  car  of  fire  to  descend  from  heaven,'  con- 
tinued the  French  general,  '  and  I  can  guide  and  direct  its  course 
upon  earth.' 

"  '  Thou  art  the  great  chief  to  whom  Maliommed  gives  power 
and  victorj-,'  said  the  Mufti. 

"  Napoleon  closed  the  conversation  with  this  not  very  pertinent 
Oriental  proverb  —  'The  bread  which  the  wicked  seizes  upon  by 
force,  shall  be  turned  to  dust  in  his  mouth.'" — Life  of  J\'apoIcon 
Buonaparte^  Vol.  I.,  j).  416. 

The  motives  which  led  Napoleon  to  profess  Mohammed- 
anism were  undoubtedly  a  desire  to  advance  the  interests 
of  his  country,  and  to  facilitate  the  operations  of  the  army 
he  commanded.  But,  if  these  motives  justified  him  in  the 
course  he  pursued,  how  much  more  had  I  to  justify  me  in 
a  similar  line  of  conduct !  His  temporary  profession  of  a 
false  religion  was  by  no  means  absolutely  necessary  under 
the  circumstances ;  while,  as  I  before  observed,  7nine  was 
indispensable  to  the  end  I  had  in  view.  And  how  much 
superior  was  my  object  to  his !  He  merely  wished  to  pro- 
mote the  ambitious  views  of  his  government ;  I,  on  the 
contrary,  was  endeavoring  to  save  my  country  from  the 
most  dreadful  evils  —  civil  war,  despotism,  and  the  estab- 
lishment of  a  false  and  persecuting  religion. 

"  But  how,"  inquires  some  cautious  reader,  "  were  you, 
as  an  honest  man,  justified  in  taking  such  a  course?  What 
confidence  can  I  place  in  your  statements,  when  I  know, 
by  your  own  confession,  that  you  have  once  played  the 
part  of  a  hypocrite  ?  " 

These  suspicions  are  very  natural,  and  from  the  first  I 
expected  to  incur  them ;  but  I  think  that  a  very  little  con- 
sideration of  the  extraordinary  nature  of  my  case  will 
convince  any  candid  person  of  the  propriety,  and  indeed 
necessity,  of  the  course  of  action  I  pursued. 

Suppose  for  a  moment,  my  dear  reader,  that  you  were 
located  on  our  western  frontier,  in  the  vicinity  of  a  large, 
powerful,  and  increasing  tribe  of  savage  Indians.  Sup- 
pose it  is  apparent,  from  their  movements,  that  they  intend 
evil  to  the  whites,  your  countrymen ;  that  they  are  medi- 
tating murder,  plunder,  and  devastatioji,  and  all  the  horrors 


REASONS    FOR    JOINING    THE    MORMONS.  9 

that  invariably  attend  an  Indian  war.  Suppose  that  by 
going  to  them,  and  professing  to  be  their  friend,  you  knew 
that  you  would  be  received  by  them  freely,  and  admitted 
into  their  councils,  and  could,  by  the  intelligence  you 
would  thus  gain,  be  enabled  to  frustrate  their  plans,  and 
avert  from  your  country  the  evils  and  dangers  which  these 
savages  would  otherwise  bring  upon  it.  Would  you  for'  a 
moment  scruple  to  make  such  pretensions?  especially 
if,  as  in  the  case  of  the  Mormons,  there  were  no  other 
possible  way  to  do  what  the  safety  of  the  west  demanded, 
—  viz.,  expose  the  imposture. 

The  fact  that  in  joining  the  Mormons  I  was  obliged  to 
make  a  pretence  of  belief  in  their  religion  does  not  alter 
the  case.  That  pretence  was  unavoidable  in  the  part  I 
was  acting,  and  it  should  not  be  condemned  like  hypocrisy 
towards  a  Christian  church.  For  so  absurd  are  the  doc- 
trines of  the  Mormons  that  I  regard  them  with  no  more 
reverence  than  I  would  the  worship  of  Manitou  or  the 
Great  Spirit  of  the  Indians,  and  feel  no  more  compunction 
at  joining  in  the  former  than  in  the  latter,  to  serve  the 
same  useful  purpose. 

I  was  perfectly  satisfied,  even  before  the  Mormons  went 
from  Ohio,  that  it  was  the  intention  of  Joe  Smith  and 
those  who  possessed  his  confidence,  to  destroy  the  sacred 
institutions  of  Christianity,  and  substitute,  instead  of  its 
powerful  restraints  upon  the  unholy  passions  of  the  human 
heart,  a  frightfully-corrupt  system,  that  would  enable  them 
to  give  free  course  to  their  lust,  ambition,  and  cruelty —  a 
system  than  which,  one  more  abominable  the  arch-enemy 
of  mankind  himself  could  not  have  invented.  Persons 
unacquainted  with  the  subject  can  scarcely  imagine  the 
baseness  and  turpitude  of  Mormon  principles,  and  the 
horrid  practices  to  which  these  principles  give  rise.  When 
they  learn  how  habitually  the  Mormons  sacrifice  to  their 
brutal  propensities  the  virtue  and  happiness  of  young  and 
innocent  females,  how  they  cruelly  persecute  those  who 
refuse  to  join  them,  and  how  they  murder  those  who  at- 
tempt to  expose  them,  they  will  look  with  indulgence  upon 
almost  any  means  employed  to  thwart  their  villanous  de- 
signs and  detect  and  disclose  their  infamy. 

There  was  —  I  repeat  it  —  no  possible  way  for  me  to  ex- 


10  MI.S.Hrihl    Vr  TBE   5AI2STS. 


prafess  mj  be&ef 

mi  take  aa  active  pat, 
§ar  a  toae   m  cjama^  ew  tW^'  Mea&aKcs..     Tke  I  dU* 
ani  I  if|teal  to  emr  reaier  «f  tbis  hsok  vkctker^  ki  Tiev 
oftle  facts  ketea  k«tod  a^M  ■ialiimyi    i  liiliiii.i.^  ihi 
cxmse  I  tookQii^Mtta»eBftideaKt»tlKfraseiatiKT 

Thai  ham  wrtmmfihT^m^^iihHmuM  iKJii  , 
I  dhoaM  kare  rwaw^  a»««  t^  MarasK;  for  viik 
I  possesK^  power,  vealtkr  ^  tie  Meaas  to  gnbfy 
tint  I  H^t  eoMaenc.     B^Ifeit 
IB  tliie  kmd?  of  God  to  expose 
ad  to  opcK  tke  eves  af 

an-  datT.  lad.   vkatprer  kbt  be   tl—gbi  of  laj 

I  XK  siiisfed  aikk  tke  appravai 
assrd  ^ei  I  I  ilMi  tkat  I  kare  acted 


CHARACTER   OF   THE  AUTHOR. 


tftkSi^  fTOii^   r         ji  1.  A  r  cnrfJL 


«•  T»  v&o^  k  BBj  cooieeii. :  — 

^  -     -  ^aaose  wtrnlr^  thai  t&ey  ku«  j^  serenl 

7^3  -  -m^  Daeter  J.  C.  Jkmett,  tsad  bxre 

*5.  P. 

"  JfflSS 


CHARACTER    OF    THE    AUTHOR.  11 

From  Thomas  Burrell,  Jr^  .\L  D. :   J.   O.  Masiersoru  .1  ."*>/_  of 
Trinity  College^  Dublin;  and  others,  diizins  or' South  Blo:»k- 
Jkld. 

"  SoiTTB  Bloomfteij},  0<)io,  Jtaauaj  1,  1533. 
"  We,  the  undersigned,  citizens  of  South  Blooaifield,  Pickaway 
County,  Ohio,  do  certify-  that  we  hare  been  personallv  acqaainted 
with  Doctor  John  C.  Bennett,  for  more  than  twelve  months,  (and 
several  of  us  for  a  number  of  years,)  during  which  time"  he  sus- 
tained the  character  of  a  sober,  moral  man.  scrupulonslv  honest  in 
all  his  dealiag-s :  and,  in  regard  to  his  talents  and  professional  ac- 
quirements, we  believe  them  to  be  of  the  first  order. 

"Isaac  Cape. 
"Tho.  Bcrreli.,  Jr. 
'•  Be^j.  S.  Olps, 
«J.  O.  Masteksox, 
"  Geo.  R.  Pipkr, 
"William  Pratt, 
"C.  R.  Byk.-^ 


From  the  President  and  Secretary  of  the  Board  of  TVvstees  of  the 
}FUIoughby  University. 

"Chack:.n,  .-i.j  ■■).,-■:  00,  IS.%1. 
"J.  C.  Bexxett,  M.  D. 

"  Dear  Sir,  — 

'•  A  few  days  since,  we.  as  officers  of  the  Board  of 
Trustees  of  the  Willoughby  University  of  Lake  Erie,  forwarded  to 
you  an  appointment  as  agent  for  said  Institution  ;  since  which 
time  the  Board  have  had  a  meeting,  at  which  it  was  aorreed  that  we 
should  communicate  with  you  on  the  subject  of  coiumenciug  our 
University  by  organizing  the  Medical  Department  first,  or,  in  ^tlier 
words,  by  obtaining  (if  possible)  two  or  more  suitable  persons  to 
deliver  a  course  of  Lectures  on  Anatomy.  Chemistry,  &c.,  as  soon 
as  the  necessary  arrangements  can  be  made.  It  was  also  proposed, 
at  the  meetmg  of  the  Board,  to  commence  a  select  school,  or  prepar- 
atory department,  as  soon  as  a  suitable  person  could  be  obtained  to 
take  ciiarge  of  it,  and  circumstances  justify  the  undertakin>'^. 

"  Tho  Board  tlalter  themselves  tlwt  yourself  and  your  friend  Mr. 
Masterson  may  yet  feel  it  to  be  your"  duty  to  embark  in  this  busi- 
ness, and  assist  in  building  up  this  Institution. 

"  We  make  the  suggestion  at  this  time  for  your  consideration,  and 
the  Board  would  be  happy  to  hear  from  you  on  the  subject. 

*•'  On  the  lot  wliich  the  trustees  have  purchased  is  a  large  two  story 
dwelling-house,  which  could  be  fitted  for  a  prepanUorv  school,  or  tor 
chemical  and  anatomical  lectures,  at  a  suxall  expense.' 

"The  Board  feel  thankful  far  tlio  interest  which  vou  have  taUeti  in 
this  £m//ri/o  Institution,  and  they  flatter  themselves  that  success  will 
attend  your  efforts  in  its  behalf,  and  that  you  may  yet  receive  in 
some  way  a  satisfactory  reward. 

"  N.  Alles,   Prrsi(hnl. 
"H.  G1U.11A.M,  Seaelary." 


12  HISTORY    OF   THE    SAINTS 


From  ir.  Willoughhy,  M.D.,  Professor  of  JMidwifery  in  the  Col- 
lege of  Physicians  and  Surgeons  in  the  Western  District  of 
J\'ew  Yoi'k. 

"  Faikfield,  January  20,  1835. 
"  RIy  dear  Sir,  — 

'•  Your  communication  of  the  31st  of  December  —  mailed 
the  4th  ultimo  —  has  this  day  been  received,  for  which  )-ou  will 
receive  my  thankful  acknowledg-ments. 

"  I  feel  under  greater  obligation  than  my  feeble  language  can 
express,  to  my  friends  of  the  University  located  in  your  village, 
that  they  have  honored  me  b}'  naming  their  College  after  me ;  and 
atrain,  I  am  under  renewed  obligation  to  my  much  esteemed  friends 
that  they  should  deem  my  name  worthy  of  designating  their  town. 
These  testimonials  of  regard  have  made  a  deep  impression  upon  my 
mind  —  never  to  be  forgotten.  Whatever  I  can  do  to  insure  the 
stability  and  prosperity  of  your  school  will  be  done  with  great 
cheerfulness  and  pleasure.  If  I  cannot  benefit  your  institution  by 
personal  services,  I  sliall  not  fail  of  bestowing  something  toward  its 
funds. 

"  The  contemplated  period  for  choosing  your  President  had  passed 
by  ere  I  received  your  letter,  so  that  I  could  not  render  the  reasons 
why  my  name  should  not  be  among  the  candidates.  The  President 
should  be  one  among  3'ou,  live  so  contiguous  as  to  be  enabled  to 
attend  all  your  meetings  of  the  trustees,  and  exercise  a  paternal 
care  over  the  diversified  interests  of  the  University.  These  services 
could  not  be  attended  to  by  me.  I  am  too  far  removed  from  the 
College  to  exercise  the  necessary  supervision  over  its  interests  and 
its  welfare.  I  hope,  therefore,  the  honor  has  fallen  upon  yourself, 
or  some  other  one,  more  able  to  serve  you  usefully  than  would  be 
possible  for  me  to  do. 

"  I  promise  myself  tlie  pleasure  of  visiting  mj'  friends  in  your 
section  of  country  —  and  the  University  —  the  ensuing  summer,  if 
my  health  and  that  of  my  wife  will  permit.  jMrs.  Willoughby's 
health  is  very  bad,  and  I  greatly  fear  will  never  be  much  improved. 
She  is  laboring  under  hydrathorax  —  from  organic  disease  of  the 
lungs. 

•'Receive,  my  dear  sir,  for  yourself — for  your  colleagues  and 
the  Trustees  of  the  University  over  whom  you  preside  — my  grate- 
ful acknowledgments  for  the  honors  conferred  upon  me,  with  my 
best  wishes  for  your  general  and  individual  welfare.  I  am,  my  dear 
sir,  with  sentiments  of  high  consideration,  3'our  obliged  and  very 
humble  servant, 

"Westel  Willoughby. 

"John  C.  Bennett,  M.  D., 

President  of  the  Medical  Faculty  of  the 
Willoughby  University  of  Lake  Erie." 


CHARACTER    OF    THE    AUTHOR.  13 

From  tlie  Medical  Class  of  the  Willonghhy  University  of  Lake  Erie. 

"  WiLLOUGHBY,  Oliio,  February  21,  A.  D.  1835. 

"  At  a  meeting  of  the  Medical  Class  of  the  Willoughby  Univer- 
sity of  Lake  Erie,  convened  at  the  College  Edifice,  on  Saturday, 
the  21st  inst.,  the  following  resolution  was  unanimously  adopted  : 

'^Resolved,  That  we,  the  members  of  the  Medical  Class  of  the  Wil- 
loughby University  of  Lake  Erie,  present  our  thanks  to  John  C.  Ben- 
nett, M.D.,  President  of  our  Medical  Faculty,  and  Professor  of  the 
Principles  and  Practice  of  Midwifery,  and  the  Diseases  of  Women  and 
Children,  for  the  very  able,  interesting,  and  scientific  Course  of  Lec- 
tures, by  him  delivered,  during  the  present  session,  and  as  a  feeble 
testimonial  of  our  high  regard  for  the  interest  he  has  evinced  in  our 
welfare  and  improvement,  and  for  his  splendid  talents  as  a  teacher. 

"  James  Wheeler,  President. 
"  T.  F.  Robinson,         -. 

"H.Robinson,  (  Vice-Presi- 

"  Ransford  Rogers,  >         , 
"  Daniel  Meeker,      \ 
"  E.  M.  Gleeson,        ^ 

"J.  DwiGHT,         )   c-  ^       •       >> 

"  R.H.Hardy,  5  ^^'^'■^^«^*«^- 


From  S.  P.  Hildreth,  M,  D,,  President  of  the  Medical  Convention 
of  the  State  of  Ohio,  January  1,  1838,  to  Alfred  Hobby,  Esq., 
Mayor  of  Hocking  City. 

"  Marietta,  Ohio,  April  11,  A.  D.  1838. 

"To  a.  Hobby,  Esq.,  Mayor  of  Hocking  City. 
"  Dear  Sir,  — 

"  In  answer  to  your  inquiries  as  to  '  the  acquirements 
and  medical  knowledge  of  Dr.  John  C.  Bennett,  as  a  physician  and 
surgeon,'  I  with  great  pleasure  answer,  that  I  deem  him  to  be  well 
qualified  in  either  branch,  and  that  his  opportunities  for  acquiring 
knowledge-in  the  Practice  of  Medicine  have  been  equal  to  those  o? 
any  other  in  this  portion  of  the  State. 

"  Very  respectfully, 

"  Your  obedient  servant, 

"  S.  P.  Hildreth." 


From  the  Rev.  John  Stewart,  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 

"  Hocking  City,  Ohio,  April  29,  1838. 
"  To  whom  it  may  concern  :  — 
"  This  is  to  certify,  that  1  have  been  for  many  years  intimately 
acquainted  with  John  C.  Bennett,  M.  D.,   who   was  in   1825  my 
Family  Physician  ;   Dr.  Bennett's  advantages  to  acquire  correct 

2 


14  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

medical  knowledge  have  been  very  great,  far  superior  to  most  phy- 
sicians in  this  country  ;  and  I  consider  him  one  of  our  most  able 
and  accomplished  physicians  and  surgeons. 

"John  Stewart." 


Frovi  Alfred  Hobby,  Esq.,  Mayor  of  Hocking  City,  Ohio.        \ 

"  Hocking  City,  Ohio,  June  9,  1838. 

"  To  whom  it  may  concern  :  —  I 

"  I  with  great  pleasure  state,  that  I  have  long  had  a  very  intimate  ' 
acquaintance  with  John  C  Bennett,  M.  D.,  both  as  a  medical  man,  ■ 
and  private  citizen.  I  have  a  personal  knowledge  of  his  skilful  < 
and  dexterous  professional  tact  in  some  of  the  major  operations  in  \ 
surgery,  such  as  the  extirpation  of  the  cancerous  breast;  and  as  a  ' 
citizen  I  deem  him  a  gentleman  of  much  moral  and  intellectual 
worth.  Alfred  Hobbv." 


By  perusing  Mr.  Stewart's  certificate,  and  comparing  j 
the  foregoing  dates  and  statements,  it  will  be  perceived  ; 
that  they  give  a  full  account  of  my  character  and  standing  j 
from  1825,  when  I  first  commenced  the  practice  of  m.y  | 
profession,  up  to  June,  1838,  when  I  removed  from  the  i 
State  of  Ohio  to  the  State  of  Illinois.  On  the  20th  day  j 
of  February,  1839,  I  was  unanimously  elected  Brigadier-  i 
General  of  the  Invincible  Dragoons  of  the  2d  Division 
of  Illinois  Militia,  and  commissioned  as  follows: —  ' 

"Thomas  Carlin,  Governor  of  the   State  of  Illinois,  to  all   to 
whom  these  presents  shall  come,  greeting ;  i 

"  Know  3'e,  That  J.  C.  Bennett,  having  been  duly  elected  to  the 

office  of  Brigadier- General   of  the  Invincible  Dragoons  of  the  26  I 

Division  of  the  MUitia  of  the  Stateof  Illinois,  I,  Thomas  Carlin,  Gov-  I 

ernor  of  said  State,  for  and  on  behalf  of  the  People  of  said  State,  do  1 

commission  him  Brigadier- General  of  Invincible  Dragoons  of  the  Sec-  > 

ond  Division  of  the  Militia  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  to  take  rank  from  the  ; 

20th  daj' of  February,  1839.    He  is,  therefore,  carefullj- and  diligently  ' 

to  discharge  the  duties  of  said  office,  by  doing  and  performing  all  man-  ' 

ner  of  things  thereunto  belonging ;  and  I  do  strictly  require  all  officers  ' 

and  soldiers  under  his  command  to  be  obedient  to  his  orders  ;    and  : 

he  is  to  obey  such  orders  and  directions  as  he  shall  receive  from  i 
time  to  time,  from  the  Commander-in-Chief,  or  his  superior  officer. 

"  In  testimony  wliereof,  I  have  hereunto  set  my  hand  and  caused  ' 
the  State  Seal  to  be  riffixed.     Done  at  Vandalia,  this  25lh  of  April, 

in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  thirty-nine,  | 
and  of  the  Independence  of  the  United  States  the  sixty-third. 

"Tho.  Carun.  ; 

"  By  the  Governor,  ! 
«  A.  P.  Field,  Secretary  of  State" 


CHARACTER    OF   THE    AUTHOR.  15 

On  the  20th  day  of  July,  1840,  on  the  nomination  of 
the  principal  military  men  of  the  State,  I  was  appointed 
duarter-M aster-General  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  and  com- 
missioned as  follows :  — 

"  Thomas  Carlin,  Governor  of  the   State  of  Illinois,  to  all  to 
whom  these  presents  shall  come,  greeting  : 

"  Know  ye,  That  J.  C.  Bennett  having  been  duly  appointed  to  the 
office  of  Quarter-Master- General  of  the  Militia  of  the  State  of  Illi- 
nois, I,  Thomas  Carlin,  Governor  of  said  State,  for  and  on  behalf 
of  the  People  of  said  State,  do  commission  him  Quarter-Master- 
General,  to  take  rank  from  the  20th  day  of  July,  1840.  He  is, 
therefore,  carefully  and  diligently  to  discharge  the  duties  of  said 
office,  by  doing  and  performmg  all  manner  of  things  thereunto  be- 
longing;  and  I  do  strictly  require  all  officers  and  soldiers  under  his 
command  to  be  obedient  to  his  orders  ;  and  he  is  to  obey  such 
orders  and  directions  as  he  shall  receive  from  time  to  time,  from  the 
Commander-in-Chief,  or  his  superior  officer. 

"  In  testimony  whereof,  I  have  hereunto  set  my  hand,  and  caused 
the  Great  Seal  of  State  to  be  hereunto  affixed.  Done  at  Springfield, 
this  20th  day  of  July,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  eight 
hundred  and  forty,  and  of  the  Independence  of  the  United  States 
the  sixty-fifth.  Tho.  Carlin. 

"  By  the  Governor, 

"A.  P.  Field,  Secretary  of  State" 


"Appointment  by  the  Governor. —  Brigadier- General  John 
C  Bennett  to  be  Quarter-Master-General  of  the  militia  of  the  State 
of  Illinois,  from  the  20th  day  of  July. 

"  In  making  the  above  appointment,  the  Governor  has  selected 
an  able,  energetic  and  efficient  officer.  The  duties  that  will  devolve 
on  him,  perhaps  no  man  in  the  State  is  better  qualified  to  fill,  and 
we  have  no  doubt  he  will  render  due  justice  to  the  office  which  he 
has  been  selected  to  superintend.  —  Wabash  Republican,"  as  quoted 
in  Times  and  Seasons,  No.  12,  p.  190. 


Official  Documents,  shotving  that  I  ivas  in  actual  Service  in  the 
State,  as  a  Stcde  Officer. 

"  Ordnmmce  Office,  j 

"Washington,   October  23,  1840.  j 

"J.  C.  Bennett,  Esq.  Qr.  Master  Genl.  Illinois  Ma.  Nauvoo,  111. 
"Sir,— 

"  Capt.  Wm.  H.  Bell,  the  officer  in  command  of  the  St. 
Louis  Arsenal,  has  been   instructed   to  supply  the  artillery,  small 
arms,  &c.,  specified   in  your  requisition  of  the  26th  ult.,  received 
yesterday.     The  order  will,  no  doubt,  be  filled  immediately. 
"I  am,  respectfully, 

"  Your  obedient  servant, 

"  G.  Talcott,  Lt.  Col.  Ord.' 


16  HISTORY    OF   THE    SAINTS. 

"  To  His  Excellency  Thomas  Carlin. 
"  Sir,  — 

"  The  following  Resolution  has  passed  the  House  of  Rep- 
resentatives. 

*«  '■Resolved,  That  the  Governor  b»  requested  to  furnish  tliis  House 
with  a  statement  of  the  arms  and  accoutrements  belonging  to  the 
State;  the  amount  of  the  same,  and  where  stationed,  and  how  the 
companies  bringing  themselves  under  the  regulation  of  the  militia 
law,  can  be  furnished  with  the  same,  and  at  what  point,  and  that  he 
report  to  this  House  as  soon  as  suits  his  convenience.' 

"  Respectfully, 

"  Jno.  Calhoun, 
"  Clerk  of  the  House  of  Representatives. 
"February  16,  1841." 


"Departmekt  op  State,  } 

"  Springfield,  Illinois,  ]G  February,  1841.  \ 

"  To  John  C.  Bennett,  Quarter-Master- General  of  the  Militia  of 

the  State  of  Illinois  : 
"Sir,— 

"  Enclosed  I  have  the  honor  to  send  you  a  copy  of  a  Resolution 
of  the  House  of  Representatives  of  the  General  Assembly  of  the  State 
of  Illinois,  now  in  session,  calling  on  me  for  information  relative  to 
the  number  and  kind  of  arms,  belonging  to  the  State,  their  present 
location,  as  also  the  points  where  companies  in  this  State  can  be 
furnished  with  the  same. 

"  I  have  to  request  that  you  will  report  to  me,  so  far  as  the  infor- 
mation desired  is  in  your  possession,  that  1  may  lay  the  same  before 
the  House  from  which  said  Resolution  emanated. 
"  I  have  the  honor  to  be,  sir, 

"  Your  most  obedient  servant. 

"Tho.  Carlin." 


"  MEDICAL  CONVENTION  OF  ILLINOIS. 

"  To  the  Medical  Profession  of  Illinois. 
"  At  a  meeting  of  a  number  of  the  Physicians  and  Surgeons  of  the 
State  of  Illinois,  convened  in  Springfield,  on  the  Dth  of  June,  1S40, 
for  the  purpose  of  making  preliminary  arrangements  for  the  organi- 
zation of  a  State  Medical  Society,  the  undersigned  were  appointed 
a  committee  of  correspondence,  and,  as  such,  directed  to  address 
you  on  that  subject.  It  was  proposed  that  the  medical  men  of  the 
State  of  Illinois,  should  assemble  in  Convention,  at  Springfield,  on 
the  first  Monday  of  December  next,  and  then  and  there  proceed  to 
the  complete  organization  of  the  Illinois  State  Medical  Society  — 
the  Convention  to  be  composed  of  one  or  more  delegates  from  each 
County  in  tlie  State.  This  proposition  was  unanimously  adopted  ; 
and  we  now  call  upon  j^ou  to  cooperate  with  us  in  the  consumma- 
tion of  so  desirable  a  result.  Hitherto  we  have  been  like  a  vessel 
cast  upon  a  boisteroiis  ocean,  without  compass  or  helm ;  we  have 


CHARACTER    OF    THE    AUTHOR.  17 

acted  solitary  and  alone,  without  harmony  or  concert ;  but  when  wo 
see  hundreds  of  our  fellow-citizens  and  worthy  friends,  annually 
sacrificed  by  the  empirical  prescriptions  of  charlatan  practitioners, 
on  the  altars  of  ignorance,  erected  within  the  very  temple  of  iEscu- 
lapius,  by  rude  and  unskilful  hands,  is  it  not  time  for  us  to  act?  — 
We  think  so  :  not,  however,  by  declaring  war  against  mountebanks 
and  uneducated  pretenders  to  the  art  of  healing  within  our  borders  ; 
but  by  digesting  a  plan  that  shall  he  calculated  in  its  legitimate 
operations  to  benefit  the  people,  instruct  the  unlearned,  improve 
ourselves,  and  elevate  the  entire  profession  above  all  mercenary 
considerations  to  a  station  of  superior  mental,  moral  and  medical 
excellence.  Already  do  our  forests  groan  under  the  axeman's  hand, 
and  our  prairies  swarm  with  a  busy,  free  and  enterprising  popula- 
tion ;  in  Agriculture  and  Commerce,  we  are  rapidly  approximating 
to  the  level  of  the  oldest  States;  our  citizens  are  rearing  Colleges 
and  Universities  for  mental  culture ;  our  Divines  and  Lawyers  have 
already  attained  a  high  rank  and  an  elevated  standing;  and,  shall 
medicine  be  wholly  neglected  ?  Is  Imc  of  more  consequence  tlian 
medicine,  or  property  more  valuable  than  life  ?  If  not,  let  us  not  be 
behind  our  sister  States  in  our  efforts  to  improve  our  profession, 
and  place  it  on  a  level  with  that  of  law.  We  ask  not  the  protection 
of  legal  power,  nor  do  we  require  the  strong  arm  of  legislative 
enactment  to  sustain  us.  We  place  ourselves  before  the  public  on 
our  true  merits,  having  a  strong  and  abiding  confidence  in  the 
wisdom  of  the  people.  All  we  require  is  a  concerted  effort,  to  ena- 
ble us  to  difTuse  true  and  useful  medical  knowledge  —  and  this  we 
ask.  It  is  due  to  the  profession  and  to  humanity,  now,  and  in  all 
time  to  come.  We  hope  then  to  see  a  general  attendance  on  the 
day  proposed.  "  J.  C.  Benneti,      of  Fairfield. 

"  C.   V.  Dyer,  of  Chicao-o. 

"A.  W,  Bo  WEN,      of  Juliet? 

"M.  Helm,  of  Springfield. 

"E.  H.  Merryman,  do. 

"  F.  A.  McNeil,  do. 

"J.  Todd,  do. 

"W.S.Wallace,  do. 

"D.  TuRNEY,  of  Fairfield. 

"C.  F.  Hughes,       of  Rochester. 

"I.  S.  Berry,  of  Vandalia. 

"B.H.Hart,  of  Alton." 

Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  I.  No.  11,  p.  174. 


IVom  Col  J\r.  JV.  Smith, 

"  Wabash,  August  27,  A.  D.  1840. 
"  General  Bennett : 
"  Dear  Friend,  — 

"  Yours  of  last  week  was  duly  received,  and  attended 

to.     You  speak  of  going  to  the  north  in  a  few  days,  but  whether  on 

business,  or  to  change  your  residence,  does  not  appear.     I  hope  you 

do  not  intend  leaving  this  county,  as  your  business  prospects  are 

2* 


18  HISTORY  OP  THE  SAINTS. 

good,  and  your  professional  services  much  required.  1  have  heard 
that  3'ou  intended  winding  up  your  business,  and  quittino-  our 
county,  and  this  section  of  IlHnois,  but  I  supposed  your  visit  to  the 
north  an  official  one,  pertaining  to  your  state  appointment.  Please 
write  me  before  you  start. 

"  Respectfully  yours, 

«  N.  N.  Smith." 


This  gives  an  account  of  my  standing  up  to  the  time 
of  my  removal  to  Nauvoo,  in  September,  1840.  On  the 
5th  (Jay  of  February,  1841,  I  was  unanimously  elected 
Major-General  of  the  Nauvoo  Legion,  and  commissioned 
as  follows :  — 

"  Thomas  Cakmn,  Governor  of  the   State  of  Illinois,  to  all  to 
whom  these  presents  shall  come,  greeting : 

"  Know  ye,  That  John  C.  Bennett  having  been  duly  elected  to  the 
office  of  Major-General  of  the  Nauvoo  Legion  of  the  Militia  of  the 
State  of  Illinois,  I,  Tiiomas  Carlin,  Governor  of  said  State,  for  and 
on  behalf  of  the  People  of  said  State,  do  commission  him  Major- 
General  of  said  Legion,  to  lake  rank  from  the  5th  day  of  February, 
3841.  He  is,  therefore,  carefully  and  diligently  to  discharge  the 
duties  of  said  oliice,  by  doing  and  performing  all  manner  of  things 
thereunto  belonging;  and  I  do  strictly  require  all  officers  and  soldiers 
under  his  command  to  be  obedient  to  his  orders;  and  lie  is  to  obey 
sucli  orders  and  directions  as  he  shall  receive  from  time  to  time  from 
the  Commander-in-Chief,  or  his  superior  officer. 

"  In  testimony  whereof,  1  have  iiereunto  set  my  hand,  and  caused 
the  Great  Seal  of  Slate  to  be  hereunto  affixed.  Done  at  Springfield, 
this  16th  day  of  February,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand 
eight  hundred  and  forty-one,  and  of  the  Independence  of  the  United 
States  the  sixty-fifth. 

"  Tho.  Carlin. 
"  By  the  Governor, 

"S.  A.  DovqlJlSS,  Secrctanj  of  State." 

The  following  letter  from  General  Scott  to  Judo-e 
Young,  one  of  the  United  States  Senators  from  Illinois, 
shows  clearly  that  I  coidd  legally  officiate  in  the  offices  of 
Major-General  and  Quarter-Master-General  of  Illinois  at 
the  same  time,  and  other  official  documents  will  show 
that  I  (fid  so  officiate. 

"  Wad  Office,  Avg^ist  4,  1841. 
"  Dear  Sir,  — 

"  I  hasten  to  reply  to  your  letter  of  yesterday. 
"  You  state  this  case  ;  —  General  J.  C.  Bennett,  being  the  Quarter- 
Master-General  of  Illinois,  (it  is  presumed  with  the  rank  of  Brig- 


CHARACTER    OF    THE    AUTHOR.  19 

adier-General,)  he  is  elected,  in  a  separate  organization  of  a  portion 
of  the  State,  a  Major-General,  and  commissioned  accordingly. 

"The  professional  question  put  to  me,  is  —  Are  the  two  offices 
incompatible  with  each  other  ?  —  in  otner  words,  Does  the  accept- 
ance of  the  second  vacate  the  first? 

"  I  answer  —  Not  necessarily;  —  not  unless  there  be  something 
express  to  that  effect  in  the  constitution  or  laws  of  Illinois.  The 
first  office  is  in  the  general  staff  of  the  State ;  the  second  in  the  line 
of  the  militia  generally^  or  in  the  line  of  the  separate  organization. 

"For  example;  —  General  Jesup  is  the  Quarter-Master-General 
of  the  United  States  army,  which  gives  him,  from  the  date  of 
appointment,  the  rank  of  Brigadier-General  under  one  act  of  Con- 
gress, and  under  another,  for  ten  years'  faithful  services  in  that 
rank,  he  was  made  a  Major-General  by  brevet.  As  Quarter-Master- 
General  he  serves  as  Brigadier- General :  in  all  other  situations, 
that  is,  out  of  the  staff,  his  other  commission  makes  him  a  Major- 
General. 

"  If  the  law  of  Illinois  does  not  give  the  rank  of  Brigadier,  or 
Major-General,  to  the  officer  appointed  Quarter-Master- General, 
there  is  not  even  the  show  of  incompatibility  between  the  two  com- 
missions of  General  J.  C.  Bennett  in  the  statement  laid  before  me. 

"  It  will  be  understood,  of  course,  that,  as  Major-General  of  the 
army,  I  do  not  presume  to  have  the  least  possible  authority  over 
questions  arising  in  the  militia,  under  the  laws  of  the  particular 
States.  I  venture  merely  to  give,  for  what  it  may  be  worth,  my 
professional  opinion  on  a  point  submitted  to  me. 
"  I  have  the  honor  to  remain,  Sir, 
"  With  great  respect, 

"  Your  iTiost  obedient  servant, 

"  WiNFlELD    ScOTT. 

"  Hon.  R.  M.  Young, 

"  United  States  Senate." 


On  the  1st  day  of  February,  1841,  I  was  unanimously 
elected  Mayor  of  the  city  of  Nauvoo,  and  commissioned 
as  follows :  — 

"Thomas  Carun,  Governor  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  to  all  to 
whom  these  presents  shall  come,  greeting : 

"  Know  ye,  that  John  C.  Bennett  having  been  duly  elected  to  the 
office  of  Mayor  of  the  city  of  Nauvoo,  in  the  county  of  Hancock, 
I,  Thomas  Cailin,  Governor  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  for  and  on 
behalf  of  the  People  of  said  State,  do  commission  him  Justice  of 
the  Peace  for  said  city  in  said  county,  and  do  authorize  and  em- 
power him  to  execute  and  fulfil  the  duties  of  that  office  according 
to  law. 

"  And  to  have  and  to  hold  the  said  office,  with  all  the  rights  and 
emoluments  thereunto  legally  appertaining,  until  his  successor  shall 
be  duly  elected  and  qualified  to  office. 


20  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

"  In  testimony  whereof,  I  have  hereunto  set  my  hand,  and  caused 
the  Great  Seal  of  State  to  be  hereunto  affixed.  Done  at  Spring- 
field, this  22d  day  of  March,  in  the  year  of  pur  Lord  one  thousand 
eight  hundred  and  forty-one,  and  of  the  Independence  of  the  United 
States  the  sixty-fifth. 

"Tho.  Caklin. 

"  By  the  Governor, 

"  LvMAN  Trombull,  Secretary  of  State." 

On  the  3d  of  February,  1841,  I  delivered  to  the  City 
Council,  in  the  presence  of  a  large  assembly,  the  following 

INAUGURAL   ADDRESS. 

"CiTT  OF  Nautoo,  Illinois,  February  3,  18il. 

"  Gentlemen  of  the  City  Council ; 

Aldermen  and  Councillors : 

"  Having  been  elected  to  the  Mayoralty  of  this  city  by  the  unan- 
imous suffrages  of  all  parties  and  interests,  I  now  enter  upon  the 
duties  devolving  upon  me  as  your  Chief  Magistrate  under  a  deep 
sense  of  the  responsibilities  of  the  station.  —  I  trust  that  the  confi- 
dence reposed  in  me,  by  my  fellow-citizens,  has  not  been  misplaced, 
and  for  tlie  honor  conferred  they  will  accept  my  warmest  sentiments 
of  gratitude.  By  the  munificence  and  wise  legislation  of  noble, 
high-minded,  and  patriotic  statesmen,  and  the  grace  of  God,  we 
have  been  blessed  with  one  of  the  most  liberal  corporate  acts  ever 
granted  by  a  legislative  assembly.  As  the  presiding  officer  of  the 
law-making  department  of  the  municipal  government,  it  will  be 
expected  that  I  communicate  to  you,  from  time  to  time,  by  oral  or 
written  messages,  for  your  deliberative  consideration  and  action, 
such  matters  as  may  suggest  themselves  to  me  in  relation  to  the 
public  weal ;  and  upon  this  occasion  I  beg  leave  to  present  the  fol- 
lowing as  matters  of  paramount  importance. 

"  Tiie  21st  Sec.  of  the  addenda  to  the  13th  Sec.  of  the  City 
Charter  concedes  to  you  plenary  power  'to  tax,  restrain,  prohibit 
and  suppress,  tippling-houses,  dram-shops,'  etc.  etc.,  and  I  now 
recommend,  in  the  strongest  possible  terms,  that  you  take  prompt, 
strong,  and  decisive  measures  to  'prohibit  and  suppress'  all  such 
establishments.  It  is  true  you  have  the  power  '  to  tax,'  or  license 
and  tolerate.,  them,  and  thus  add  to  the  city  finances;  but  I  consider 
it  much  better  to  raise  revenue  by  an  ad  valorem  tax  on  the  property 
of  sober  men,  than  by  licensing  dram-shops,  or  taxing  the  signs  of 
the  inebriated  worshippers  at  the  shrine  of  Bacclius.  The  revels  of 
bacchanalians  in  the  houses  of  blasphemy  and  noise  will  always 
prove  a  disgrace  to  a  moral  people.  Public  sentiment  will  do  much 
to  suppress  the  vice  of  intemperance,  and  its  concomitant  evil 
results  ;  but  anip'<i  experience  has  incontrovertibly  proven  that  it 
cannot  do  all  —  the  law  must  be  brought  to  the  rescue,  and  an 
effective  prohibitory  ordinance  enacted.  This  cannot  be  done  at  a 
better  time  than  the  prasent.     Let  us  commence  correctly,  and  the 


CHARACTER   OF   THE    AUTHOR.  21 

great  work  of  reform,  at  least  so  far  as  our  peaceful  city  is  con- 
cerned, can  be  summarily  consummated.  It  would  be  difficult  to 
calculate  the  vast  amount  of  evil  and  crime  that  would  be  prevented, 
and  the  great  good  that  would  accrue  to  tlie  public  at  large  by 
fostering  ilie  cause  of  temperance ;  but  suffice  it  to  say  that  the  one 
would  be  commensurate  to  the  other.  —  No  sales  of  spirituous  liquors 
whatever,  in  a  less  quantity  than  a  quart,  except  in  cases  of  sickness, 
on  the  recommendation  of  a  physician  or  surgeon  duly  accredited 
by  the  Chancellor  and  Regents  of  the  University,  should  be  tol- 
erated. The  liberty  of  selling  the  intoxicating  cup  is  a  false  liberty 
—  it  enslaves,  degrades,  destroys,  and  wretchedness  and  want  are 
attendant  on  every  step,  —  its  touch,  like  that  of  the  poison  Upas, 
is  Death.  Liberty  to  do  good  should  be  cheerfully  and  freely 
accorded  to  every  man  ;  but  liberty  to  do  evil,  which  is  licentious- 
ness, should  be  peremptorily  prohibited.  The  public  good  imperi- 
ously demands  it  —  and  the  cause  of  humanity  pleads  for  help. 
The  protecting  aegis  of  the  corporation  should  be  thrown  around 
every  moral  and  religious  institution  of  the  day,  which  is  in  any 
way  calculated  to  ennoble,  or  ameliorate  the  condition  of  the  human 
family. 

"  The  immediate  organization  of  the  University,  as  contemplated 
in  the  24th  Sec.  of  the  act  incorporating  our  city,  cannot  be  too 
forcibly  impressed  upon  you  at  this  time.  —  As  all  matters  in  rela- 
tion to  mental  culture,  and  public  instruction,  from  common  schools 
up  to  the  highest  branches  of  a  full  collegiate  course  in  the  Arts, 
Sciences,  and  Learned  Professions,  will  devolve  upon  the  Chan- 
cellor and  Regents  of  the  University,  they  should  be  speedily 
elected,  and  instructed  to  perfect  their  plan,  and  enter  upon  its 
execution  with  as  little  delay  as  possible.  The  wheels  of  education 
should  never  be  clogged,  or  retrograde,  but  roll  progressively  from 
the  Alpha  to  the  Omega  of  a  most  perfect,  liberal,  and  thorough 
course  of  university  attainments.  The  following  observations  in 
relation  to  false  education,  from  Alexander's  Messenger,  so  per- 
fectly accord  with  my  feelings  and  views  on  this  highly  important 
subject,  that  I  cannot  do  better  than  incorporate  them  in  this 
message. 

" '  Among  the  changes  for  the  worse,  which  the  world  has  wit- 
nessed within  the  last  century,  we  include  that  specious,  superficial, 
incomplete  way  of  doing  certain  things,  which  were  formerly 
thouo-ht  to  be  deserving  of  care,  labor,  and  attention.  It  would 
seem  that  appearance  is  now  considered  of  more  moment  than 
reality.  The  modern  mode  of  education  is  an  example  in  point. 
Children  are  so  instructed  as  to  acquire  a  smattering  of  every  thing; 
and,  as  a  matter  of  consequence,  they  know  nothing  properly. 
Seminaries  and  academies  deal  out  their  moral  and  natural  philos- 
ophy, their  geometry,  trigonometry,  and  astronomy,  their  chem- 
istry, botany,  and  mineralogy,  until  the  mind  of  the  pupil  becomes 
a  chaos ;  and,  like  the  stomach  when  it  is  overloaded  with  a  variety 
of  food,  it  digests  nothing,  but  converts  the  superabundant  nutri- 
ment to  poison.  This  mode  of  education  answers  one  purpose  :  — 
it  enables  people  to  seem  learned  ;  and  seemingly,  by  a  great  many, 


22  HISTORY    OF   THE    SAINTS. 

is  thought  all-sufficient.  Thus  we  are  schooled  in  quackery,  and 
are  early  taught  to  regard  showy  and  superficial  attainments  as  most 
desirable.  Every  boarding  school  Miss  is  a  Plato  in  petticoats, 
without  an  ounce  of  that  genuine  knowledge,  that  true  pliilosoph}', 
which  would  enable  her  to  be  useful  in  the  world,  and  to  escape 
those  perils  with  which  she  must  necessarily  be  encompassed. 
Young  people  are  taught  to  use  a  variety  of  hard  terms,  which  they 
understand  but  imperfectly  ; — to  repeat  lessons  which  they  are  un- 
able to  apply ;  —  to  astonish  their  grandmothers  with  a  display  of 
their  parrot-like  acquisitions  ;  —  but  their  mental  energies  are  clogged 
and  torpified  with  a  variety  of  learned  lumber,  most  of  wliich  is  dis- 
carded from  the  brain  long  before  its  possessor  knows  how  to  use  it. 
Tliis  is  the  quackery  of  education. 

"  '  The  effects  of  the  erring  system  are  not  easily  obliterated. 
The  habit  of  using  words  without  thought,  sticks  to  the  unt'ortunate 
student  througli  life,  and  should  he  ever  learn  to  think,  lie  cannot 
e.xpress  his  ideas  without  the  most  tedious  and  perplexing  verbosity. 
This  is,  more  or  less,  the  fault  of  every  writer  in  the  nineteenth 
century.  The  sense  is  encumbered  with  sound.  The  scribbler 
appears  to  imagine  that  if  lie  puts  a  sufficient  number  of  words 
together  he  has  done  his  part ;  and,  alas  I  how  many  books  are 
written  on  this  principle.  Thus  literature,  and  even  science  itself, 
is  overloaded  with  froth  and  flummery.  Verbalizing  has  become 
fashionable  and  indispensable,  and  one  line  from  an  ancient  author 
will  furnish  the  materials  for  a  modern  treatise.' 

"  Our  University  should  be  a  '  utUitarian'  institution  —  and  com- 
petent, industrious,  teachers,  and  professors,  should  be  immediately 
elected  for  the  several  departments.  '  Knowledge  is  power,' — foster 
education  and  we  are  forever  JVee  .'  Nothing  can  be  done  which  is 
more  certainly  calculated  to  perpetuate  the  free  institutions  of  our 
common  country,  lor  which  our  progenitors  '  fought  and  bled,  and 
died,'  than  the  general  diffusion  of  useful  knowledge  amongst  the 
people.  Education  should  always  be  of  a  T^-ately  practical  character, 
for  such,  and  such  alone,  is  calculated  to  perfect  the  happiness,  and 
prosperity,  of  our  fellow-citizens  —  ignorance,  impudence,  and  false 
knowledge,  are  equally  detestable, —  shame  and  confusion  follow  in 
their  train.  As  you  now  possess  the  power,  aflbrd  the  most  ample 
facilities  to  the  Regents  to  make  their  plan  complete;  and  thus 
enable  them  to  set  a  glorious  example  to  the  world  at  large.  The 
most  liberal  policy  should  attend  the  organization  of  the  University, 
and  equal  honors  and  privileges  should  be  extended  to  all  classes  of 
the  community. 

"In  order  to  carry  out  the  provisions  of  the  25th  Sec.  of  the  act 
incorporating  our  city,  I  would  recommend  the  immediate  organiza- 
tion of  the  Legion.  Comprising,  as  it  does,  the  entire  military 
power  of  our  city,  with  a  provision  allowing  any  citizen  of  Han- 
cock county  to  unite  by  voluntary  enrolment,  early  facilities  should 
be  afforded  the  Court  Martial  for  perfecting  their  plan  of  drill, 
rules,  and  regulations.  Nothing  is  more  necessary  to  the  preserva- 
tion of  order,  and  the  supremacy  of  the  laws,  than  the  perfect 
organization  of  our  military  forces,  under  a  uniform  and  rigid  dis- 


CHARACTER   OF    THE    AUTHOR.  23 

cipline,  and  approved  judicious  drill ;  and  to  this  end  I  desire  to  see 
all  the  departments,  and  cohorts  of  the  Legion  put  in  immediate 
requisition.  Tlie  Legion  should  be  all  powerful,  panoplied  with 
justice  and  equity,  to  consummate  the  designs  of  its  projectors  — 
at  all  times  ready,  as  minute  men,  to  serve  the  state  in  such  way 
and  manner  as  may,  from  time  to  time,  be  pointed  out  by  the 
Governor.  You  have  long  sought  an  opportunity  of  showing  your 
attachment  to  the  state  government  of  Illinois  —  it  is  now  afforded  : 
the  Legion  shotild  maintain  the  constitution  and  the  laws,  and  be 
ready  at  all  times  for  the  public  defence.  The  winged  warrior  of 
the  air  perches  upon  the  pole  of  American  liberty,  and  the  beast 
that  has  the  temerity  to  ruffle  her  feathers  should  be  made  to  feel 
the  power  of  her  talons ;  and  until  she  ceases  to  be  our  proud 
national  emblem  we  should  not  cease  to  show  our  attachment  to 
Illinois.  Should  the  tocsin  of  alarm  ever  be  sounded,  and  the 
Legion  called  to  the  tented  field  by  our  Executive,  I  hope  to  see  it 
able,  under  one  of  the  proudest  mottos  that  ever  blazed  upon  a 
warrior's  shield  —  Sicut  patribus  sit  Deus  nobis;  as  God  was  with 
our  fathers,  so  may  he  be  with  us  —  to  fight  the  battles  of  our 
country,  as  victors,  and  as  freemen:  the  juice  of  the  uva,  or  the 
spirit  of  insubordination  should  never  enter  our  camp,  —  but  we 
should  stand,  ever  stand,  as  a  united  people  —  one  and  indivisible. 

"  I  would  earnestly  recommend  the  construction  of  a  wing-dam 
in  the  Mississippi,  at  the  mouth  of  the  ravine  at  or  near  the  head 
of  Main  Street,  and  the  excavation  of  a  ship-canal  from  that  point 
to  a  point  terminating  in  a  grand  reservoir  on  the  bank  of  said  river, 
east  of  the  foot  of  said  street  a  distance  of  about  two  miles.  This 
would  afford,  at  the  various  outlets,  the  most  ample  water  power 
for  propelling  any  amount  of  machinery  for  mill  and  manufacturing 
purposes,  so  essentially  necessary  to  the  building  up  of  a  great 
commercial  city  in  the  heart  of  one  of  the  most  productive  and  de- 
lightful countries  on  earth.  I  would  advise  that  an  agent  be  imme- 
diately appointed  on  behalf  of  the  city  corporation,  to  negotiate 
with  eastern  capitalists  for  the  completion  of  this  great  work,  on 
the  most  advantageous  terms,  even  to  the  conveyance  of  the  privi- 
lege for  a  term  of  years.  This  work  finished,  and  the  future  great- 
ness of  this  city  is  placed  upon  an  imperishable  basis.  In  addition 
to  the  great  advantages  that  will  otherwise  accrue  to  the  city  and 
country  by  the  construction  of  this  noble  work,  it  would  afford  the 
best  harbor  for  steam-boats,  for  winter  quarters,  on  this  magnificent 
stream. 

"  The  public  health  requires  that  the  low  lands,  bordering  on  the 
Mississippi,  should  be  immediately  drained,  and  the  entire  timber 
removed.  This  can  and  will  be  one  of  the  most  healthy  cities  in 
the  west,  provided  you  take  prompt  and  decisive  action  in  the 
premises.  A  Board  of  Health  should  be  appointed  and  vested  with 
the  usual  powers  and  prerogatives. 

"  The  Governor,  Council  of  Revision,  and  Legislature  of  Illinois, 
should  be  held  in  everlasting  remembrance  by  our  people  —  they 
burst  the  chains  of  slavery  and  proclaimed  us  forever  free  !  A  vote 
of  thanks,  couched  in  the  strongest  language  possible,  should  be 
tendered  them  in  our  corporate  capacity;  and,  when  this  is  done, 


24  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

Quincy,  our  first  noble  city  of  refuge,  when  you  came  from  the 
slaughter  in  Missouri  with  your  garments  stained  with  blood,  should 
not  be  forgotten. 

"  As  tJie  Chief  Magistrate  of  your  city  I  am  determined  to  exe- 
cute all  state  laws,  and  city  ordinances  passed  in  pursuance  to  law, 
to  tlie  very  letter,  should  it  require  the  strong  arm  of  military  power 
to  enable  me  to  do  so.  As  an  officer  I  know  no  man ;  the  peaceful 
unoffending  citizen  shall  be  protected  in  the  full  exercise  of  all  his 
civil,  political,  and  religious  rights,  and  the  guilty  violator  of  law 
shall,  be  punished  icithout  respect  to  pcrsotis. 

"All  of  which  is  respectfully  submitted. 

"John  C  Bennett." 
Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  II.,  No.  8,  p.  316. 

On  the  3d  day  of  February,  1841,  I  was  unanimously 
elected  Chancellor  of  the  University  of  the  City  of  Nauvoo, 
as  will  hereafter  appear. 

"  We  are  glad  to  see  the  action  of  the  Council  on  the  subject  of 
education  ;  and  that  they  have  chosen  a  Board  of  Regents,  and 
appointed  a  Chancellor  and  Registrar  for  the  '  University  of  the  City 
of  Nauvoo.'  The  appointment,  we  think,  does  great  credit  to  the 
Council,  and,  we  have  no  doubt  but  that  the  board  will  assiduously 
engage  in  the  great  and  all-important  work  of  education  " 

Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  II.,  No.  8,  p.  319. 


"AN  ORDINANCE,  ORGANIZING  THE  'UNIVERSITY  OF  THE 
CITY  OF  NAUVOO.' 

"  Sec.  1.  Be  it  ordained  by  the  City  Council  of  the  City  of  Nau- 
voo, That  the  '  University  of  the  City  of  Nauvoo,'  be,  and  the  same 
is  hereby  organized,  by  the  appointment  of  the  following  Board  of 
Trustees,  to  wit :  John  C.  Bennett,  Chancellor,  William  Law,  Regis- 
trar, and  Joseph  Smith,  Sidney  Rigdon,  Hyrum  Smith,  William 
Marks,  Samuel  H.  Smith,  Daniel  H.  Wells,  N.  K.  Wliitney,  Charles 
C.  Rich,  John  T.  Barnett,  Wilson  Law,  Don  C.  Smith,  John  P. 
Greene,  Vinson  Knight,  Isaac  Galland,  Elias  Iligbee,  Robert  D. 
Foster,  James  Adams,  Robert  B.  Thompson,  Samuel  Bennett, 
Ebenezer  Robinson,  John  Snider,  George  Miller,  and  Lenos  M. 
Knight,  Regents ;  who  shall  hereafter  constitute  the  '  Chancellor 
and  Regents  of  the  University  of  the  City  of  Nauvoo,'  as  contem- 
plated in  the  24th  section  of  '  An  act  to  incorporate  the  City  of 
Nauvoo,'  approved  December  16, 1840. 

"  Sec.  2.  The  Board  named  in  the  1st  section  of  this  ordinance 
shall  hold  its  first  meeting  at  the  office  of  Joseph  Smith,  on  Tuesday, 
the  9th  day  of  February,  1841,  at  2  o'clock,  P.  M. 

"  Sec.  3.  This  ordinance  shall  take  effect,  and  be  in  force,  from 
and  after  its  passage. 

"  Passed,  Feb.  3d,  A.  D.  1841. 

"John  C  Bennett,  Mayor 

"  James  Sloan,  Recorder." 


CHARACTER   OF    THE    AUTHOR.  25 

"  COIMMON  SCHOOL  BOOKS  ADOPTED. 
"  Extract  from  the  Minutes  of  the  Board  of  Regents. 

"  Unitersity  of  the  City  of  Nauvoo,  ) 
IJliiiois,  December  18,  A.  D.  1841.      ) 

"  Gcntlevien  of  the  Board  of  Regents : 

"Permit  me  to  present  for  your  adoption,  the  following  series 
of  books  for  Common  Schools,  which  1  have  carefully  selected  and 
approved.,  to  wit: — Town's  Spelling  Book  ;  Town's  Introduction  to 
Analysis;  Town's  Analysis;  M'Vickar's  Political  Economy  for 
Schools;  Help  to  Young  Writers;  Girl's  Reading  Book,  by  Mrs. 
Sigourney  ;  Boy's  Readmg  Book,  by  Mrs.  Sigourney ;  Bennett's 
Arithmetic  ;  Bennett's  Book  Keeping  ;  Kirkhain's  English  Gram- 
mar ;  Olney's  Geography. 

"  John  C.  Bennett,  Chancellor. 

"Adopted  as  follows,  to  wit:  — 

"Yeas  —  Joseph  Smith,  Hyrum  Smith,  Charles  C.  Rich,  Heber 

C.  Kimball,  John  Taylor,  N.  K.  Whitney,  Samuel  H.  Smith,  John 
Snider,  Wm.  Marks,  Ebenezer  Robinson,  Elias  Higbee,  (Regents,) 
William  Law,  (Registrar,)  John  C.  Bennett,  (Chancellor,)  13. 

"  Nays  —  None. 

"Absent— Sidney  Rigdon,  Daniel  H.  Wells,  John  T.  Barnett, 
Wilson  Law,  John  P.  Green,  Vinson  Knight,  Isaac  Galland,  Robert 

D.  Foster,  James  Adams,  Samuel  Bennett,  George  Miller,  Lenos 
M.  Knight,  (Regents,)  12." 

Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  III.,  No.  5,  p.  652. 


On  the  6th  day  of  May,  A.  D.  1841,  I  was  appointed 
Master  in  Chancery  for  Hancock  County,  as  follows  :  — 

"  Know  all  men  by  these  presents.  That  I,  Stephen  A.  Douglass, 
Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court,  and  presiding  Judge  of  the  P'ifth  Ju- 
dicial Circuit  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  do  constitute  and  appoint  John 
C.  Bennett,  Esq.,  Master  in  Chancery,  in  and  for  the  County  of 
Hancock,  in  said  State,  and  do  authorize  and  impower  him  to  have, 
exercise  and  enjoy,  all  the  rights,  privileges  and  emoluments  per- 
taining to  said  olHce  of  Master  in  Chancery. 

"  Given  under  my  hand  and  seal,  this  6th  day  of  May,  A.  D.  1341. 

"  S.  A.  Douglass,  [seal.]  " 

"State  of  Illinois,  ) 
Hancock  County.       ( 

"  This  day^  personally  appeared  before  the  undersigned,  Judge  of 
the  Fifth  Judicial  Circuit  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  John  C.  Bennett, 
Esq.,  who,  being  first  duly  sworn,  declared  that  he  would  faithfully 
support  the  Constitution  of  the  United  Stales  and  of  this  State,  and 
that  he  would  faithfully  discharge  his  duties  as  Master  in  Chancery, 
according  to  the  best  of  his  knowledge,  skill  and  understanding. 

"  Given  under  my  hand  and  deal,  this  6th  day  of  i\Iay,  A.  D.  1841. 

"  S.  A.  Douglass,  [seal.]  " 

3 


26  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

On  the  7th  day  of  April,  1841,  I  was  elected  to  the 
First  Presidency  of  the  Mormon  Church,  as  will  be  seen 
by  reference  to  the  conference  minutes,  published  in  the 
"  Times  and  Seasons,"  (the  official  Mormon  paper,  edited 
by  Joe  Smith,  the  Prophet,  assisted  by  John  Taylor,  the 
Apostle,)  Vol.  11.,  No.  12,  page  387,  from  which  I  extract 
the  followinof :  — 


o 


"Gen.  J.  C.  Bennptt  was  presented  with  the  First  Presidency,  as 
Assistant  President,  until  President  Rigdon's  health  should  be  re- 
stored." 


MORMON  TESTIMONY,  UP  TO  THE  TIME  OF,  AND 
SUBSEQUENT  TO,  MY  WITHDRAWAL  FROM  THE 
CHURCH. 

"  <■  The  Qaarter-Masti>r-Geueral  of  Illinois,  (Dr.  J.  C.  Bennett)  has 
joined  the  Mormons  and  been  baptized  according  to  their  faith. 
Under  such  a  leader  they  will  no  doubt  be  able  to  whip  tlie  Mis- 
sourians  in  the  next  campaign.'  —  Louisville  Journal. 

"Very  liberal,  Mr.  Editor:  But  the  '■next  campaign' belongs  to 
the  PEOPLE,  and  unless  tliey  arise  with  one  voice  and  avenge  the 
wrongs  of  an  innocent  and  much  injured  community — farewell  to 
LIBERT V  —  she  has  fled  forever,  and  mohocrats  bear  rule." — Times 
and  Seasons,  Vol.  II.,  No.  3,  p.  234. 


"  HZr  Great  Moral  Victory  I — The  high  grounds  taken  by 
our  Mayor,  General  Bennett,  in  relation  to  the  great  work  of  tern 
perance  reform,  have  been  fully  sustained  by  the  City  Council. 
President  Joseph  Smith,  chairman  of  the  committee  to  wliom  was 
referred  that  part  of  the  inaugural  address  of  His  Honor,  the  Mayor, 
which  relates  to  Temperance,  reported  the  following  Ordinance  to 
the  City  Council  on  the  15th  instant,  which  was  elaborately  dis- 
cussed by  Aldermen  Wells  and  Whitney,  and  Councillors  J.  Smith, 
H.  Smith,  Rigdon,  Law,  and  Greene,  and  in  Committee  of  the 
Whole,  by  His  Honor,  and  after  dispensing  with  the  rules,  read 
three  several  times,  and  passed  unanimously. 

"  This  ordinance  passed  by  ayes  and  noes,  on  the  call  of  Coun- 
cillor Barnett,  as  follows  :  — 

"  Yeas  —  Aldermen  Wells,  Smith,  Marks  and  Whitney — Coun- 
cillors Joseph  Smith,  Hyrum  Smith,  Don  C.  Smith,  Rigdon,  Law, 
Rich,  Barnett,  Greene,  and  Knight  —  and  the  Mayor  — 14.  (Full 
Council.) 

"  Nays —  None! 

"  Thus  has  the  City  of  Nauvoo  set  a  glorious  example  to  the 
world  —  sustained  by  principle,  and  the  Great  God  ;  to  wit  ■  - 


CHARACTER    OF    THE    AUTHOR.  27 

"AN    ORDINANCE    IN    RELATION    TO    TEMPERANCE. 

"  Sec.  1.  Be  it  ordained  by  the  City  Council  of  the  City  of  Nau- 
voo,  That  all  persons  and  establishments  whatever,  in  this  City,  are 
prohibited  from  vending  whisky  in  a  less  quantity  than  a  gallon,  or 
other  spirituous  liquors  in  a  less  quantity  than  a  quart,  to  any  person 
whatever,  excepting  on  the  recommendation  of  a  Physician  duly 
accredited,  in  writing,  by  the  '  Chancellor  and  Regents  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  the  City  of  Nauvoo,'  and  any  person  guilty  of  any  act 
contrary  to  the  prohibition  contained  in  this  ordinance,  shall,  on 
conviction  thereof  before  the  Mayor,  or  Municipal  Court,  be  fined 
in  any  sum  not  exceeding  twenty-five  dollars,  at  the  discretion  of 
said  Mayor,  or  Court ;  and  any  j)er3on  or  persons  who  shall  attempt 
to  evade  this  ordinance  by  giving  away  liquor,  or  by  any  other 
means,  shall  be  considered  alike  amenable,  and  fined  as  aforesaid. 

"  Sec.  2.  This  ordinance,  to  take  effect,  and  be  in  force,  from  and 
after  its  passage. 

"  Passed,  Feb.  loth,  A.  D.  1841. 

"  John  C.  Bennett,  Mayor. 

"  James  Sloan,  Recorder." 


" '  Gen.  J.  C.  Bennett,  a  very  popular  and  deserving  man,  has  been 
elected  Mayor  of  Nauvoo,  Hancock  county.'  —  Chicago  Democrat. 

"  We  cheerfully  respond  to  the  abo*re  statement  respecting  our 
worthy  Mayor,  and  we  are  indeed  glad  that  any  of  our  friends  of 
the  press,  can  nobly  come  forward  and  award  to  faithfulness  and 
integrity  their  due,  even  if  found  in  a  Mormon. 

"  We  would  say,  that  if  untiring  diligence  to  aid  the  afflicted 
and  the  oppressed,  zeal  for  the  promotion  of  literature  and  intel- 
ligence, AND  A  VIRTUOUS  AND  CONSISTENT  CONDUCT,  are  evidences  of 
popularity,  &.C.,  we  venture  to  say  that  no  man  deserves  the  appel- 
lations of  'popular  and  deserving'  more  than  Gen.  J.  C.  Bennett." 
Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  II.,  No.  10,  p.  351. 


"  LAYING  THE  CORNER  STONE  OF  THE  TEMPLE. 
GENERAL  CONFERENCE. 

"  '  Oh  !  that  I  could  paint  the  scenes 
Which  on  my  heart  are  sketcli'd.' 

"  The  general  conference  of  the  Church,  together  with  the  laying 
of  the  corner  stones  of  the  Temple  of  our  God,  now  building  in  this 
city,  have  long  been  anticipated  by  the  saints  of  the  Most  High, 
both  far  and  near,  with  great  pleasure,  when  they  should  once  more 
behold  the  foundation  ot  a  house  laid,  in  which  they  might  worship 
the  God  of  their  fathers. 

"  It  frequently  happens,  that  our  anticipations  of  pleasure  and 
delight,  are  raised  to  such  a  height  that  even  exceeds  the  enjoyment 
itself,  but  we  are  happy  to  say,  this  was  not  the  case  with  tlie  im 
mense  multitude  who  witnessed  the  proceedings  of  the  sixth  of 
April,  and  subsequent  days  of  conference.  The  scenes  were  of  such 
a  character,  the  enjoyment  so  intense,  that  left  anticipation  far  behind. 


28  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

"  However  anxious  we  are  to  portray  the  grandeur  and  majesty 
of  the  celebrations,  the  union  and  order  which  every  way  prevailed, 
we  are  confident,  we  shall  come  very  far  short  of  doing  them 
justice. 

"For  some  days  prior  to  the  sixth,  the  accession  of  strangers  to 
our  city  was  great,  and  on  the  wide-spread  prairie,  which  bounds 
our  city,  might  be  seen  various  kinds  of  vehicles  wending  their  way 
from  different  points  of  the  compass  to  the  city  of  >iauvoo,  while 
the  ferry-boats  on  the  Mississippi  were  constantly  employed  in 
wafting  travellers  across  its  rolling  and  extensive  bosom. 

"  Among  the  citizens,  all  was  bustle  and  preparation,  anxious  to 
accommodate  their  friends  who  flocked  in  from  distant  parts,  and 
who  they  expected  to  share  with  them  the  festivity  of  the  day,  and 
the  pleasures  of  the  scene. 

"  At  length  the  long-expected  mom  arrived,  and  before  the  king 
of  day  had  tipped  the  eastern  horizon  with  his  rays,  were  prep- 
arations for  the  celebration  of  the  day  going  on.  Shortlv  after  sun- 
rise, the  loud  peals  from  the  artillery  were  heard,  callingthe  various 
companies  of  the  Legion  to  tlie  field,  who  were  appointed  to  take  a 
conspicuous  part  in  the  day"s  proceedinjrs. 

"The  citizens  from  the  vicinity,  now  began  to  pour  in  from  all 
quarters,  a  continuous  train,  for  about  three  hours,  and  continued  to 
swell  the  vast  assemblv. 

"  At  eight  o'clock,  A.  M.^Iajor-General  Beimett  left  his  quarters 
to  organize  and  prepare  the  Legion  for  the  duties  of  the  dav,  which 
consisted  of  about  fourteen  couipanies,  several  in  uniform',  besides 
several  companies  from  Iowa,  and  other  parts  of  the  county,  which 
joined  them  on  the  occasion. 

"At  half  past  nine,  Lieut.  General  Smith  was  informed  that  the 
Legion  was  organized  and  ready  for  review,  and  immediately  ac- 
companied by  his  staff,  consisting  of  four  Aids-de-camp,  and  twelve 
guards,  nearly  all  in  splendid  uniforms,  took  his  march  to  the  parade 
ground.  On  their  approach,  they  were  met  by  the  band,  beautifully 
equipped,  who  received  them  with  a  flourish  of  trumpets  and  a 
regular  salute,  and  then  struck  up  a  lively  air,  marching  in  front  to 
the  stand  of  the  Lieut.  General.  On  his  approach  to  the  parade 
ground  the  artillery  was  again  fired,  and  the  Legion  eave  an  ap- 
propriate salute  while  passing.  This  was  indeed  a  glorious  sight, 
such  as  we  never  saw,  nor  did  we  ever  expect  to  see  such  a  one  in 
the  west.  The  several  companies,  presented  a  beautiful  and  inter- 
esting spectacle,  several  of  them  being  uniformed  and  equipped, 
while  the  rich  and  costly  dresses  of  the  oincers,  would  have  become 
a  Bonapajte  or  a  Washington. 

"  After  the  arrival  of  Lieut.  General  Smith,  the  ladies  who  had 
made  a  beautiful  silk  flag,  drove  up  in  a  carriage  to  present  it  to  the 
Legion.  Maj.  General  Bennett,  very  politely  attended  on  them, 
and  conducted  them  in  front  of  Lieut.  General  Smith,  who  im- 
mediately alighted  from  his  charger,  and  walked  up  to  the  ladies, 
who  presented  the  flag,  making  an  appropriate  address.  Lieut. 
General  Smith,  acknowledged  the  honor  conferred  upon  the  Legion, 
and  stated  that  as  long  as  he  had  the  command,  it  should  never  be 


CHARACTEE    OF    THE    AUTHOR.  29 

disgraced ;  and  then  politely  bowing  to  the  ladies  gave  it  into  the 
hands  of  Maj.  General  Bennett,  who  placed  it  in  possession  of 
Comet  Robinson,  and  it  was  soon  seen  gracefallj  waring  in  front 
of  the  Legion.  During  the  time  of  presentation,  the  baud  struck 
up  a  lively  air  and  anotSer  salute  was  fired  from  the  artillery. 

"  After  the  presentation  of  the  flag,  Lieut.  General  Smith,  accom- 
panied by  his  suite,  reviewed  the  Legion,  which  presented  a  very 
imposing  appearance,  the  difierent  officers  saluting  as  he  passed. 
Lieut.  General  Smith  then  took  his  former  stand  and  the  whole 
Legion  by  companies  passed  before  him  in  review. 

THE    PROCESSrOX. 

"  Immediately  after  the  review.  Gen.  Bennett  organized  the  pro- 
cession, to  march  to  the  foundation  of  the  Temple,  in  the  following 
order ;  to  wit : 

Lieut.  Gen.  Smith, 

Brig.  Generals  Law  and  Smith, 

Aids-de-Camp,  and  conspicuous 

strangers. 

General  Staff, 

Band, 

2nd  Cohort,  (foot  troops,) 

Ladies  eight  abreast. 

Gentlemen,  eight  abreast, 

1st    Cohort,  (horse    troops.) 

"  Owing  to  the  vast  numbers  who  joined  in  the  procession,  it  was 
a  considerable  length  of  time  before  the  whole  could  be  organized. 

"  The  procession  then  began  to  move  forward  in  order,  and  on 
their  arrival  at  the  Temple  block,  the  Generals  with  their  staffs  and 
the  distmgnished  strangers  present,  took  their  position  inside  of  the 
foundation,  the  ladies  formed  on  the  outside  immediately  next  the 
walls,  the  gentlemen  and  infantry  behind,  and  the  cavalry  in  the 
rear. 

"  The  assembly  being  stationed,  the  choristers,  under  the  super- 
intendence of  B.  S.  Wilber,  sung  an  appropriate  hvmn. 

"  Prest.  Ricrdon,  then  ascended  the  platform,  which  had  been 
prepared  for  the  purpose,  and  delivered  a  suitable 

ORATION", 

which  was  listened  to  with  the  most  profound  attention  by  the 
assembly.  From  the  lonj  affliction  and  weakness  of  body  we 
hardly  expected  the  speaker  to  have  made  himself  heard  by  the 
congregation,  but  he  succeeded  beyond  our  most  sanguine  expecta- 
tions, and  being  impressed  with  the  greatness  and  solemnities  of  the 
occasion,  he  rose  suf>erior  to  his  afflictions  and  weakness,  and  for 
more  than  an  hour  occupied  the  attention  of  the  assembly. 

"  It  was  an  address  worthy  a  man  of  God,  and  a  messenger  of 

salvation.     We  have  heard  the  speaker  on  ot.her  occasions  when  he 

has  been  more  eloquent,  when  tliere  has  been  more  harmony  and 

beauty  in  the  construction  of  his  sentences,  and  when  the  refined 

3* 


30  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

ear  has  been  more  delighted ;  but  never  did  we  hear  him  pour  out 
such  pious  effusions ;  in  short  it  was  full  to  overflowing,  of  Christian 
feeling  and  high-toned  piety. 

"  He  called  to  review  the  scenes  of  tribulation  and  anguish 
through  which  the  Saints  had  passed,  the  barbarous  cruelties  in- 
flicted upon  them  for  their  faith  and  attachment  to  the  cause  of 
their  God,  and  for  the  testimony  of  Jesus,  which,  they  endured  with 
patience,  knowing  that  they  had  in  heaven  a  more  enduring  sub- 
stance, a  crown  of  eternal  glory. 

"In  obedience  to  the  commandments  of  their  Heavenly  Father, 
and  because  that  Jesus  had  again  spoken  from  the  heavens,  were 
they  engaged  in  laying  the  foundation  of  the  Temple  that  the  Most 
High  miglit  have  a  habitation,  and  where  the  Saints  might  assemble 
to  pay  their  devotions  to  his  holy  name. 

"  He  rejoiced  at  the  glorious  prospect  wliich  presented  itself  of 
soon  completing  the  edifice,  as  there  were  no  mobs  to  hinder  them 
in  their  labors,  consequently  their  circumstances  were  very  diSerent 
than  before. 

"  After  tiie  address,  the  choir  sung  a  hymn.  Prest.  Rigdon  then 
invoked  the  blessings  of  Almighty  God  upon  the  assembly,  and 
upon  those  who  should  labor  on  the  building. 

"  The  First  Presidency  superintended  the  laying  of  the 

CHIEF    CORNER    STONE, 

on  the  south-east  corner  of  the  building,  which  done,  Prest.  J. 
Smith  arose  and  said,  that  the  first  corner  stone  of  the  Temple  of 
Almighty  God  was  laid,  and  prayed  that  the  building  might  soon 
be  completed,  that  the  Saints  might  have  an  habitation  to  worship 
the  God  of  their  fathers. 

"  Prest.  D.  C.  Smith  and  his  Councillors,  of  the  High  Priests' 
Quorum,  tlien  repaired  to  the  "feouth  west  corner,  and  laid  the  cor- 
ner stone  tliereof. 

"  The  High  Council,  representing  the  Twelve  laid  the  north-west 
corner  stone. 

"  The  Bishops  with  their  Councillors  laid  the  north-east  corner 
stone  with  due  solemnities. 

"  The  ceremony  of  laying  the  corner  stones  being  over,  the  Le- 
gion marched  to  the  parade  ground,  and  formed  a  hollow  square  for 
an  address.  Maj.  General  Bennett  addressed  the  Legion  at  some 
length,  applauding  them  for  their  soldierlike  appearance,  and  for 
the  attention  which  both  officers  and  men  had  given  to  the  orders. 

"  Lieutenant-General  Smith  likewise  e.xpressed  his  entire  appro- 
bation of  the  conduct  of  the  Legion  and  all  present. 

"  The  assembly  then  separated  with  cheerful  hearts,  and  thanking 
God  for  the  great  blessings  of  peace  and  prosperity  by  which  thev 
were  surrounded,  and  hearts  burning  with  affection  for  their  favorite 
and  adopted  state. 

"  It  was  indeed  a  gladsome  sight,  and  e.'ttremely  affecting,  to  see 
the  old  revolutionary  patriots,  who  had  been  driven  from  their 
homes  in  Missouri,  strike  hands  and  rejoice  together,  in  a  land 
where  they  knew  they  would  be  protected  from  mobs,  and  where 


CHARACTER    OF    THE    AUTHOR.  31 

they  could  again  enjoy  the  liberty  for  which  they  had  fought  many 
a  hard  battle. 

1'  "  The  day  was  indeed  propitious  — heaven  and  earth  combined  to 
make  the  scene  as  glorious  as  possible,  and  long,  very  long,  will  the 
6th  of  April,  A.  D.  1841,  be  remembered  by  the  many  thousands 
who  were  present. 

"  The  whole  passed  off  with  perfect  harmony  and  good  feeling. 
The  people  were  truly  of  one  heart  and  mind,  no  contention  or  dis- 
cord; even  persons  unconnected  with  the  Church  forgot  their  pre- 
judices, and  for  once  took  pleasure  in  the  society  of  the  Saints, 
admired  their  order  and  unanimity,  and  undoubtedly  received  favor- 
able impressions  by  their  visit. 

"  Too  much  praise  cannot  be  given  toMaj.  General  Bennett  for  his 
active  services  on  the  occasion  :  he  has  labored  diligently  for  the 
prosperity  of  the  city,  and  particularly  for  the  Legion,  and  it  must 
have  been  a  proud  day  for  him,  and  entirely  satisfactory,  to  see  his 
efforts  crowned  with  success,  and  his  labor  so  well  bestowed. 

"R.  B.  Thompson." 
Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  II.,  No.  12,  p.  380. 


" IMPORTANT. 
"Dr.  Bennett  is  of  the  opinion  that  most  of  the  bilious  affections 
to  which  our  citizens  are  subjected  during  the  hot  season,  can  be 
prevented  by  the  free  use  of  the  Tomato  —  we  are  of  the  same  opin- 
ion, and  as  health  is  essential  to  our  happiness  and  prosperity  as  a 
people,  we  would  earnestly  recommend  its  culture  to  our  fellow-cit- 
izens, and  its  general  use  for  culinary  purposes.  Do  not  neglect  it." 
Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  II.,  No.  13,  p.  404. 


"  It  is  well  known,  that  Gen.  Bennett  has  for  some  time  been 
striving  to  organize  the  militia  of  this  state,  on  a  plan  which  would 
make  them  more  effective  in  the  time  of  emergency.  The  example 
of  his  skill  and  ability,  to  effect  that  object,  so  necessary  for  the 
public  weal,  is  now  fairly  before  the  public  ;  and  as  lovers  of  our 
country  we  hope  that  it  will  be  satisfactory  and  be  adopted  by  the 
citizens  of  this  state. 

"In  time  of  peace,  it  is  necessary  to  prepare  for  war;  the  follow- 
ing remarks  of  Gen.  Washington  to  botii  houses  of  Congress,  in 
1793,  are  so  appropriate,  that  we  cheerfully  give  them  a  place. 

"■  I  am  pressing  upon  you  the  necessity  of  placing  ourselves  in  a 
condition  of  complete  defence,  and  exact  the  fulfilment  of  duties 
towards  us.  The  people  ought  not  to  indulge  a  persuasion  contrary 
to  the  order  of  human  events.  There  is  a  rank  due  to  the  nation, 
which  will  be  withheld,  if  not  lost,  by  the  known  weakness  and  abso- 
lute neglect  to  improve  our  system  of  defence.  If  we  desire  to  avoid 
insult,  we  must  be  ready  to  repel  it.'  " 

Times  and  Seasons,  Yo].  II.,  No.  14,  p.  416. 


"  FYom  the  Bdleoille  Advocate. 
"  '  Mr.   Boyd  :    I  have   read   with  much   interest,  the  '  Inaugural 
Address'  of  Dr.  John  C.  Bennett,  of  the  city  of  Nauvoo,  which  was 


32  HisTonr  or  the  saints. 

delivered  to  the  City  Council  on  tlic  '3d  of  February  last,  as  published 
in  the  '  Times  and  Seasons.' 

"•It  is  a  document  wiiich,  1  think,  is  entitled  to  the  particular 
notice  of  our  respectable  fellow-citizens:  and  if  it  sliould  meet  your 
views,  as  it  does  mine,  diffusing  a  will  to  promote  morality  and 
science,  I  would  be  proud  to  see  it  in  its  verhatim  character,  por- 
trayed in  the  columns  of  your  widely  circulating  paper,  the  "Belle- 
ville Advocate." 

"'I  am  and  have  been  long  acquainted  witli  Dr.  Bennett,  and  his 
present  character  in  the  military  department  of  this  State  is  not  in- 
ferior to  any  in  the  Union. 

"'  With  this  communication,  you  will  receive  the  Address. 
"  '  With  sentiments  of  respect, 
"  '  I  have  the  honor  to  be 

"  '  Yours,  respectfully,  &c. 

"'  W.  G.  GoioRTH,  M.  D. 

'"Belleville,  Illinois,  March  22,  18-11.'  " 

"  We  should  be  happy  to  comply  with  the  request  of  our  worthy 
and  esteemed  M.  D.  friend,  'Old  Pills,'  to  publish  the  'Address,' 
entire,  which  he  was  kind  enougli  to  furnish  us ;  but  the  press  of 
other  matter  prevents.  We  have  given  it  an  attentive  perusal  ;  and 
heartily  concur  with  the  sentiments  contained  therein.  Certainly, 
they  ought  to  be  the  guide  of  those  who  are  placed  in  immediate 
authority  over  the  morals  of  community,  and  Mayoi-  Bennett 
clearly  understands  his  duties.  We  shall  make  some  extracts  from 
his  speech,  and  earnestly  commend  them  to  our  readers.  We 
think,  our  'town'  Trustees  might  profit  by  the  example  that  is  set 
them,  by  the  Mayor  of  Nauvoo." 

Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  II.,  No.  14,  p.  419. 


"  Not  only  has  the  Lord  given  us  favor  in  the  eyes  of  the  com- 
munity, who  are  happy  to  see  us  in  the  enjoyment  of  all  the  rights 
and  privileges  of  freemen,  but  we  arc  happy  to  state,  that  several  of 
the  principal  men  of  Illinois,  who  have  listened  to  tlie  doctrines  we 
promulge,  have  become  obedient  to  the  faith,  and  are  rejoicing  in 
the  same  ;  among  whom  is  John  C.  Bennett,  M.  D.,  Quarter-Master- 
General  of  Illinois." —  Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  II.,  No.  G,  p.  275. 


"  For  the  Times  and  Seasons. 
"THE    NAUVOO    LEGION. 
"The  firm  heart  of  the  Sage  and  the  Patriot  is  warm'd 
By  the  grand  '  Nauvoo  Legion  :  '    The  '  Legion  '  is  form'd 
To  oppose  vile  oppression,  and  nobly  to  stand 
In  defence  of  the  honor,  and  laws  of  the  land. 
Base,  illegal  proscribers  may  tremble  —  'tis  right 
That  the  lawless  aggressor  should  shrink  with  affright, 
From  a  band  that's  united  fell  mobbers  to  chase. 
And  protect  our  lov'd  country  from  utter  disgrace. 


CHARACTER    OF    THE    AUTHOR.  33 

"Fair  Columbia!  rejoice  !  look  away  to  the  West, 
To  thy  own  Illinois,  where  tlie  saints  have  found  rest 
See  a  phcEnix  come  fortji  from  the  graves  of  the  just, 
Whom  Missouri's  oppressors  laid  low  in  the  dust: 
See  a  phoenix  —  a  'Legion' — a  warm-hearted  band, 
Who,  unmov'd,  to  thy  basis  of  freedom  will  stand. 

"When  the  day  of  vexation  rolls  fearfully  on  — 
When  thy  children  turn  traitors  —  when  safety  is  gone  — 
When  peace  in  tliy  borders  no  longer  is  found  — 
When  the  fierce  battles  rage,  and  the  war-trumpets  sound; 
Here,  here  are  thy  warriors  —  a  true-hearted  band, 
To  their  country's  best  int'rest  forever  will  stand; 
For  tken  to  thy  standard,  the  '  Legion  '  will  be 
A  strong  bulwark  of  Freedom  —  of  pure  Liberty. 

"Here's  the  silver-hair'd  vet'ran,  who  sufFer'd  to  gain 
That  Freedom  he  now  volunteers  to  maintain : 
The  brave,  gallant  young  soldier  —  the  patriot  is  here 
With  his  sword  and  his  buckler,  his  helmet  and  spear; 
And  the  horseman  whose  steed  proudly  steps  to  the  sound 
Of  the  soul-stirring  music  that's  moving  around  ; 
And  here,  too,  is  the  orphan,  whose  spirit  grows  brave 
At  the  mention  of  Boggs,'  and  his  own  father's  grave; 
Yes,  and  bold-hearted  Chieftains  as  ever  drew  breath, 
Who  are  fearless  of  danger  —  regardless  of  death; 
Who've  decreed  in  the  name  of  the  Ruler  on  high 
That  the  Laws  shall  be  honor' d — that  treason  shall  die. 

"  Should  they  need  reunforcements,  those  rights  to  secure, 
Wiiich  our  forefathers  purchas'd ;  and  Freedom  ensure, 
There  is  still  in  reserve  a  strong  Cohort  above  ; 
'Lo.'  the  chariots  of  Israel,  and  horsemen  thereof.' 

"Eliza. 
"Cnv  OF  Nautoo,  June  2,  1841." 

Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  II.,  No.  17,  p.  467. 


"  EXTRACT 
"  From  a  Revelation  given  to  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  Jan.  19,  1841. 

"Again,  let  my  servant,  John  C.  Bennett,  help  you  in  your  labor, 
in  sending  my  word  to  the  Kings  and  people  of  the  earth,  and  stand 
by  you,  even  you  my  servant  Joseph  Smith  in  the  hour  of  affliction, 
and  his  reward  shall  not  fail  if  he  receive  counsel ;  and  for  his  love, 
he  shall  be  great;  for  he  shall  be  mine  if  he  docs  this,  saith  the 
Lord.  I  have  seen  the  work  he  hath  done,  which  I  accept,  if  he 
continue;  and  will  crown  him  with  blessings  and  great  glory." 
Times  and  Seasons,  'V^ol.  II.,  No.  15,  p.  425. 


34  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

"THE  WARSAW  SIGNAL. 

"  We  can  hardly  find  language  to  express  our  surprise  and  dis- 
approbation at  the  conduct  of  the  Editor  of  the  '  Signal,'  as  man- 
itested  in  that  paper  of  tlie  19th  ult.  We  had  fondly  hoped  that  the 
sentiments  tiiere  expressed,  would  never  have  dared  to  be  uttered 
by  any  individual,  in  tlie  comnuinity  in  wliieh  we  reside,  whose 
friendship  we  esteem,  and  whose  virtuous  and  honorable  conduct, 
have  secured  them  the  approval  of  every  patriotic  and  benevolent 
mind.  We  are,  however,  anxious  to  know  the  real  feelings  of  indi- 
viduals, and  are  glad  that  the  latent  feelings  of  the  Editor  of  the 
Signal,  have  at  last,  manifested  themselves,  clearly  and  distinctly. 

"  And,  we  would  ask  llie  Editor  of  the  Signal,  what  is  the  cause 
of  his  hostility  —  of  this  sudden  and  unexpected  ebullition  of  feeling 
— this  spirit  of  opposition  and  animosity  .-'  Whose  rights  have  been 
trampled  upon .''  Whose  peace  have  we  disturbed .'  General  Ben- 
nett has  been  appointed  Master  in  Chancery,  by  Judge  Douglass, 
and  General  Bennett  is  a  Mormon  !  This  is  the  atrocious  act  —  this 
is  the  cause  of  the  Editor's  vile  vituperation.  It  will  not  require  the 
gift  of  discernment  to  tell  what  spirit  the  Editor  was  possessed  of, 
when  he  wrote  the  following :  — 

"  '  Bennett  has  but  recently  become  an  inhabitant  of  this  State  — 
he  joins  a  sect  and  advocates  a  creed  in  which  no  one  believes  he 
has  any  faith.' 

"  It  is  obvious,  that  the  intention  is  to  make  the  community 
believe,  that  General  Bennett  is  a  mere  renegade — hypocrite  — 
and  all  that  is  base  in  humanity.  But  General  Bennett's  character 
as  a  gentleman,  an  officer,  a  scholar,  and  physician,  stands  too  high 
to  need  defending  by  us ;  suffice  it  to  say,  that  he  is  in  the  confidence 
of  the  Executive,  holds  the  office  of  Quarter-Master- General  of  this 
State,  and  is  well  known  to  a  large  number  of  persons  of  the  first 
respectability  throughout  the  State.  He  has,  likewise,  been  favor- 
ably known  for  upwards  of  eight  years  by  some  of  the  authorities 
of  the  Church,  and  has  resided  three  years  in  this  State.  But  being 
a  Mormon,  his  virtues  are  construed  into  defects,  and  is 
thought  a  proper  object  of  the  base,  cowardly,  and  ungentlemanly 
attack  of  the  Editor  of  the  '  Signal.'  " 

Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  II.,  No.  15,  pp.  431,  432. 


"  Generals  Joseph  Smith,  John  C.  Bennett,  and  Hyrum  Smith, 
and  some  other  citizens  of  Nauvoo,  attended  the  military  parade,  at 
Montrose,  on  the  ]4tli,  as  visitors,  on  the  special  invitation  of  Gen- 
eral Swazey,  and  Colonel  Fuller  of  Iowa,  the  officers  in  command. 
Generals  Joseph  and  Ilyrum  Smith  attended,  attired  in  plain  citi- 
zen's garb,  as  citizens,  without  the  least  military  appearance  about 
them.  General  Bennett,  and  some  of  his  statf  officers,  it  is  true, 
appeared  in  the  'splendid  and  brilliant  uniform  of  the  Nauvoo  Le- 
gion,' as  the  Editor  of  the  Signal  is  pleased  to  term  it.  All  passed 
off  with  perfect  good  feeling,  and  in  a  highly  creditable  manner." 
Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  II.,  No.  23,  p.  563. 


CHARACTER    OF    THE    AUTHOR.  35 


"STATE  GUBERNATORrAL  COXVENT[ON. 

"  City  of  Nauvoo,  Illinois,  ) 
December  20,  A.  D.  1841.      J 
"  To  my  friends  in  Illinois :  — 

"  The  Gubernatorial  Convention  of  the  State  of  Illinois  have 
nominated  Colonel  Adam  W.  Snyder  for  GOVERNOR,  anA 
Colonel  John  Moore  for  LIEUTENANT-GOVERNOR  of  the 
Slate  of  Illinois —  election  to  take  place  in  August  next.  Colonel 
Moore,  like  Judge  Douglass,  and  Esq.  Warren,  was  an  intimate 
friend  of  General  Bennett,  long  before  that  gentleman  became  a 
member  of  our  community,  and  General  Bennett  informs  us  that 
no  men  were  more  efficient  in  assisting  him  to  procure  our  great 
chartered  privileges  than  were  Colonel  Snyder,  and  Colonel  Moore. 
They  are  sterling  men,  and  friends  of  equal  rights  —  opposed  to  the 
oppressor's  grasp,  and  the  tyrant's  rod.  With  such  men  at  the  head 
of  our  State  Government,  we  have  nothing  to  fear.  In  the  next 
canvass  we  shall  be  influenced  by  no  party  consideration  —  and  no 
Carthaginian  coalescence  or  collusion,  with  our  people,  will  be  suf- 
fered to  afi'ect,  or  operate  against.  General  Bennett  or  any  other  of 
our  tried  friends  already  scmi-oJjiciaUy  in  the  field;  so  the  partisans 
in  this  county  who  expect  to  divide  the  friends  of  humanity  and 
equal  rights,  will  find  themselves  mistaken  —  we  care  not  a  fio-  for 
Whig  or  Democrat:  they  are  both  alike  to  us;  but  we  shall  go  for 
our  friends,  our  tried  friends,  and  the  cause  of  human  liberty., 
which  is  the  cause  of  God.  We  are  aware  that  '  divide  and  con- 
quer,' is  the  watch  word  with  many,  but  with  us  it  cannot  be  done 
—  we  love  liberty  too  well  —  we  have  suffered  too  much  to  be  easily 
duped  —  we  have  no  cat's-paws  amongst  us.  We  voted  for  Gen- 
eral Harrison,  because  we  loved  him — ho  was  a  gallant  officer, 
and  a  tried  statesman ;  but  this  is  no  reason  whj'  we  should  always 
be  governed  by  his  friends  —  he  is  now  dead,  and  all  of  his  friends 
are  not  ours.  We  claim  the  privileges  of  freemen,  and  shall  act 
accordingly.  Douglass  is  a  Master  Spirit,  and  his  friends  are  our 
friends  —  we  are  willing  to  cast  our  baimers  on  the  air,  and  fight  by 
his  side  in  the  cause  of  humanity,  and  equal  rights  —  the  cause  of 
liberty  and  the  law.  Snvder,  and  Moore,  are  his  friends  —  they 
are  ours.  These  men  are  free  from  the  prejudices  and  superstitions 
of  the  age,  and  such  men  we  love,  and  such  men  will  ever  receive 
our  support,  be  their  political  predilections  what  they  may.  Snyder, 
and  Moore,  are  knoicn  to  be  our  friends;  their  friendship  is  vouched 
for  by  those  whom  we  have  tried.  We  will  never  be  justly  charged 
with  the  sin  of  ingratitude  —  they  Aare  served  us,  and  we  will  serve 
them.  "Joseph  Smith, 

"  Lieutenant- General  of  the  Kauvoo  Legion." 
Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  III.,  No.  5,  p.  651. 


"  RULES  OP  ORDER  OF  THE  CITY  COUNCIL. 

"  Ex'rartufrom  the  Minutes  of  the  City  Council. 

"  The  Council  then  received  the  following  communication  from 
the  Mayor,  to  wit : 


36  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 


"  JIayoh's  Office,  City  of  Nauvoo,  Illinois,  January '■23,  A.  D.  1842. 

"  Gentlemen  of  the  City  Council ; 

"Aldermen  and  Councillors  :  — 

"  I  have  carefully  selected  and  prepared  the  following  '  Rules  of 
Order  of  the  City  Council  of  the  City  of  Nauvoo,'  and  present  them 
for  your  adoption,  to  wit :  — 

"  Rides  of  Order  of  the  City  Council  of  the  City  ofJVauvoo. 
"  Duties  of  the  Mayor. 

"  1st.  The  Mayor,  or  President  pro  tempore^  shall  take  the  chair 
and  organize  the  Council,  within  thirty  minutes  after  the  arrival  of 
the  hour  to  which  it  shall  have  been  adjourned,  and,  while  presid- 
ing, shall  restrain  all  conversation  irrelevant  to  the  business  then 
under  consideration. 

"  2d.  Tlie  Mayor  having  taken  the  chair,  and  a  quorum  (which 
shall  consist  of  a  majority  of  the  entire  Council)  being  present,  the 
Council  shall  be  opened  by  prayer,  after  which  the  journal  oi'  the 
preceding  meeting  shall  be  read  by  the  Recorder,  to  the  end  that 
any  mistake  may  be  corrected  that  shall  iiave  been  made  in  the 
entries ;  after  which  no  alteration  of  the  journal  shall  be  permitted, 
without  the  unanimous  consent  of  tiie  members  present. 

"  3d.  The  Mayor  sliall  decide  all  questions  of  order  —  subject, 
nevertheless,  to  an  appeal  to  the  Council,  by  any  member. 

"  4th.  When  the  question  is  taken  on  any  subject  under  consid- 
eration, the  Mayor  shall  call  on  the  members  in  llie  affirmative  to 
say,  «(/,  —  tliose  in  the  negative  to  say,  ?(o  —  and  he  shall  declare 
tlie  result.  When  doubts  arise  on  the  decision,  he  ma}'  call  on  the 
members  voting  to  rise,  or  take  the  yeas  and  nays — the  yeas  and 
nays,  likewise,  may  be  taken  on  the  call  of  any  four  members. 

'•  5th.  The  Mayor  shall  have  a  riglit  to  vote  on  all  occasions  ; 
and  when  his  vote  renders  the  division  equal,  the  question  shall 
be  lost. 

"  (jth.  The  ]Ma3'or  shall  sign  his  name  to  all  acts,  addresses,  and 
resolutions  of  the  Council. 

"  Of  the  Vice-Mayor. 

"  7lh.  The  Council  shall  elect  a  Vice-Mayor,  to  serve  as  Presi- 
dent pro  tempore,  who  shall  preside  during  the  absence  of  the  Mayor, 
and  who  shall  be  chosen  by  ballot — and  a  majority  of  the  votes  of 
the  members  present  shall  be  necessary  to  a  choice. 

"Sth.  If  at  any  meeting  when  a  majority  shall  be  assembled, 
neither  the  Mayor,  nor  the  President  pro  tempore,  shall  be  present, 
the  Council  shall  proceed  to  the  election  of  a  President  for  that 
meeting. 

"Of  the  Recorder. 

"  Pth.  The  Recorder  shall  keep  a  journal  of  the  proceedings  of 
the  Council,  and  shall  enter  therein  vi'hatever  a  majority  of  the 
members  shall  order ;  and,  in  all  cases,  the  yeas  and  nays,  or  dissent 
of  any  member,  when  required  to  do  so. 


CHARACTER   OF    THE    AUTHOR.  37 

'•'  10th.  The  Recorder  shall  read  whatever  is  laid  before  the  Coun- 
cil for  the  consideration  of  the  members,  and  shall  countersign  every 
act,  address,  or  resolution,  passed  by  the  Council,  noting  the  date  of 
its  passage. 

"  11th.  When  the  yeas  and  nays  are  called  upon  any  question, 
the  Recorder  shall  read  over  distinctly,  lirst,  the  names  of  tlie  mem- 
bers who  voted  in  the  affirmative,  and  next,  the  names  of  those  who 
voted  in  the  negative. 

"  Of  the  Marshal. 

"  12th.  The  Marshal  shall  serve  as  Door-Keeper,  and  Sergeant- 
at-Arms,  to  the  Council. 

"Order  of  Bosiness. 

"  13th.  After  the  reading  of  the  journal  of  the  preceding  meeting, 
the  Mayor  shall  call  for  petitions,  and  no  petition  shall  be  received 
thereafter,  unless  by  unanimous  consent. 

"  14th.  Petitions  having  been  called  for  and  disposed  ©f,  reports 
of  Standing  Committees  shall  next  be  received,  then  reports  of 
Select  Committees,  and  then  any  miscellaneous  business  shall  be  in 
order. 

"  Decorum. 

"  15th.  The  Mayor  shall  always  be  at  liberty  to  deliver  his  senti- 
ments in  debate,  on  any  question  before  the  Council ;  but  when  the 
Mayor  speaks,  it  shall  be  from  his  chair. 

"  16th.  In  cases  of  disorderly  conduct  in  spectators,  the  Mayor 
may  either  order  the  persons  out,  committing  the  disorder  ;  have 
the  room  cleared  ;  or  fine  or  commit  the  offenders  to  prison  for  con- 
tempt. 

"Of  Order  and  Debate. 

"  17th.  When  any  member  is  about  to  speak  in  debate,  or  offer 
any  matter  to  the  Council,  he  shall  rise  from  his  seat,  and  address 
the  Mayor  as  '  Mr.  President,'  and  avoid  personalities. 

"  18th.  When  two  members  rise  at  the  same  time,  the  Mayor 
shall  name  the  person  to  speak,  but  in  all  other  cases,  the  member 
first  rising  shall  speak  first.  No  member  shall  speak  more  than 
three  times  to  the  same  question  without  leave  of  the  Council,  nor 
speak  more  than  twice  without  leave,  until  every  person  choosing 
to  speak  shall  have  spoken. 

"l!Jth.  Any  member  may  call  another  to  order,  and  when  a 
member  is  so  called  to  order,  he  shall  immediately  desist  speaking, 
until  the  Mayor  decide  whether  he  is  in  order,  or  not ;  and  every 
question  of  order  sliall  be  decided  without  debate  ;  but  any  member 
may  appeal  from  his  decision  to  the  Council ;  if  the  decision  be  in 
favor  of  the  member  called  to  order,  he  shall  be  at  liberty  to  pro- 
ceed ;  if  otherwise,  the  Council  shall  determine  upon  the  propriety 
of  bis  proceeding  with  his  observations. 

"20th.  When  a  question  has  been  taken  and  carried  in  the  affir- 
mative, or  negative,  it  shall  be  in  order  for  any  member  of  tiie 
majority  to  move  for  the  reconsideration  thereof;  but  no  motion  for 
the  reconsideration  of  any  vote  shall  be  in  order,  after  the  paper 
4 


38  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

upon  which  the  same  shall  have  been  taken,  shall  hare  gone  out  of 
the  possession  of  the  Council 

"21st.  No  motion,  or  proposition,  shall  be  received  as  an  amend- 
ment which  shall  be  a  substitute  for  the  proposition  before  the  Coun- 
cil;  but  nothing  shall  be  considered  a  substitute  which  shall  have 
relation  to  the  subject  matter  under  consideration. 

"22d.  When  the  yeas  and  nays  are  called,  every  member  shall 
vote,  unless  specially  excused  ;  and  in  voting  by  yeas  and  nays, 
the  Counsellors  shall  be  called  first,  the  Aldermen  next,  and  the 
Mayor  last. 

"23d.  When  a  motion  is  made  and  seconded,  it  shall  be  reduced 
to  writing,  and  shall  be  first  read  aloud  before  any  order  be  taken 
thereon  ;  but  the  question,  '  Will  the  Council  now  consider  it,' 
shall  not  be  put,  unless  called  for  by  a  member,  or  is  deemed  neces- 
sary by  the  Mayor  :  and  on  motions  to  amend,  the  question  of  con- 
sideration shall  in  no  case  be  put. 

"  24th.  Any  motion  maybe  withdrawn  or  modified  by  the  mover, 
at  any  time  before  a  final  decision  or  amendment. 

"  25th.  When  a  question  is  under  debate,  no  motion  shall  be 
received  but  to  adjourn,  to  lie  on  the  table,  for  the  previous  ques- 
tion, to  postpone  indefinitely,  to  postpone  to  a  day  certain,  to  com- 
mit, or  to  amend;  which  several  motions  shall  have  precedence  in 
the  order  they  stand  arranged.  A  motion  to  strike  out  the  enacting 
words  of  a  bill,  shall  have  precedence  of  a  motion  to  amend,  and,  if 
carried,  shall  be  considered  a  rejection. —  And  a  motion  to  refer  to  a 
Standing  Committee,  shall  have  precedence  of  one  to  refer  to  a 
Select  Committee.  A  motion  to  adjourn  shall  always  be  in  order  ; 
that,  and  a  motion  to  lie  on  the  table,  shall  be  taken  without  debate. 

"2Gth.  The  previous  question  shall  be  in  this  form,  'Shall  the 
main  question  be  now  put.'''  It  shall  only  be  admitted  when  de- 
manded by  a  majority  of  the  members  present ;  until  it  is  decided, 
shall  preclude  all  amendment  and  further  debate  of  the  main  ques- 
tion, and  upon  said  question  there  shall  be  no  debate. 

"  27th.  Any  member  may  call  for  the  division  of  a  question  where 
the  sense  will  admit  of  it,  but  a  question  to  strike  out  and  insert 
shall  be  indivisible. 

"  28th.  When  a  question  is  carried  in  the  affirmative  by  yeas  and 
nays,  any  member  may  enter  on  the  journal  his  reasons  for  dis- 
senting. 

"  2'Jth.  It  shall  not  be  in  order  to  introduce  a  bill,  unless  by  way 
of  report  from  committee,  or  leave  be  previously  asked  and  obtained. 

"  30th.  Every  bill  or  resolution  requiring  the  signature  of  tiie 
Mayor  and  Recorder,  shall  receive  three  several  readings  previous 
to  its  passage. 

"  3lst.  The  first  reading  of  a  bill  shall  be  for  information,  and  if 
opposition  be  made  to  it,  the  question  sliall  be,  '  Sliall  this  bill  be 
rejected  J '  If  no  opposition  be  made  it  shall  go  to  the  second  read- 
ing without  a  question,  when  it  shall  bo  open  for  discussion  and 
amendment,  or  such  order  as  the  Council  may  think  proper  to  take, 
except  the  question  on  the  passage  thereof,  which  can  only  be 
taken,  on  the  day  of  the  introduction  of  the  bill,  by  the  consent  of 
two  thirds  of  the  members  present. 


CHARACTER  OF  THE  AUTHOR.  39 

"  32nd.  Before  any  bill  or  resolution  requiring  the  signature  of  the 
Mayor  and  Recorder,  shall  be  read  a  third  time,  the  question  shall 
be  put,  'Shall  this  bill  be  read  a  third  time?'  and  if  a  majority  of 
the  members  present  shall  not  vote  in  the  afiirmative,  the  same 
shall  be  declared  to  be  rejected. 

"  33rd.  On  the  third  reading  of  a  bill,  the  question  shall  be  on  its 
passage,  but  it  may  be  committed  at  any  time  previous  to  its 
passage. 

"  34th.  When  a  blank  is  to  be  filled,  and  different  sums  or  dates 
are  proposed,  the  question  shall  be  first  taken  on  the  highest  sura  or 
longest  date,  and  thence  downwards. 

"  35th.  The  Council  may  at  any  time  suspend  any  of  its  rules  by 
a  majority  of  three  fourths  of  the  members  present. 

"  36th.  After  the  arrival  of  the  hour  to  which  the  Council  may 
stand  adjourned,  no  member  who  may  have  appeared,  shall  absent 
himself  without  leave  of  those  present,  or  of  the  Council  when 
formed. 

"Of  Committees. 

»'  37th.  All  Standing  and  Select  Committees  shall  be  appointed  by 
the  Mayor,  unless  otherwise  directed,  and  the  first  named  member 
shall  be  the  Chairman.  The  following  Standing  Committees  shall 
be  appointed,  to  wit : 

A  Committee  of  Ways  and  Means,  to  consist  of  one  member  from 
each  ward,  to  whom  shall  be  referred  all  subjects  of  taxation  and 
revenue. 

A  Committee  of  Improvement,  to  consist  of  one  member  from  each 
ward,  to  whom  shall  be  referred  all  subjects  relative  to  repairs  and 
opening  of  roads  and  streets,  and  other  subjects  of  a  similar  nature. 

A  Committee  of  Claims,  to  consist  of  three  members,  to  whom 
shall  be  referred  all  matters  of  claims  against  the  city,  and  applica- 
tions for  remission  of  penalties. 

A  Committee  of  Unfinished  Business,  to  consist  of  two  members, 
who  shall  examine  the  journal  of  the  preceding  Council,  and  report 
such  business  as  may  have  remained  unfinished. 

A  Committee  of  Elections,  to  consist  of  three  members. 

A  Committee  of  Police,  to  consist  of  one  member  from  each  ward, 
who  are  empowered  to  call  upon  any  officer  of  the  Corporation, 
for  any  information,  report,  paper  or  other  matter  relative  to  the 
police. 

A  Committee  of  Municipal  Laws,  to  consist  of  five  members,  to 
whom  shall  be  referred  all  bills  for  ordinances  presented  to  the 
Council. 

A  Committee  of  Public  Grounds,  to  consist  of  one  member  from 
each  ward. 

A  Committee  of  Public  Works,  to  consist  of  three  members. 

"  Of  Amendment  to  Rules. 

"  38th.  All  motions  for  amendment  of  the  rules,  shall  be  submit- 
ted one  month  previous  to  a  final  determination  thereof,  unless 
three  fourths  of  the  members  present  shall  assent  that  it  shall  be 
finally  acted  on  the  day  on  which  it  is  submitted. 


40  HISTORY    OF   THE    SAINTS. 

"  Of  Balloting. 
"  39th.    In  balloting  for  committees,  a  plurality  of  votes  shall  be 
sufficient  to  make  a  choice,  but  in  other  cases  a  majority  of  the 
whole  number  of  votes  shall  be  required  to  decide. 

"  All  of  which  is  respectfully  submitted. 

"  John  C.  Bennett,  Mayor. 

"  The  above  communication  was  read  by  the  Recorder  to  the  City 
Council,  on  the  Ji"2d  January,  1842,  and  referred  to  a  Select  Com- 
mittee, consisting  of  Joseph  Smith  and  Orson  Pratt,  —  the  Commit- 
tee reported  back  the  Communication  and  recommended  its  adop- 
tion, which  was -carried." 

Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  III.,  No.  7,  pp.  683 — 686. 


"  In  regard  to  the  correspondence  between  Dr.  C.  V.  Dyer  and  Gen. 
Bennett,  referred  to  by  Gov.  Duncan,  his  statements  are  foul  perver- 
sions of  truth ;  the  correspondence  does  not  show  either  myself  or 
Gen.  Bennett  to  be  abolitionists,  but  the  friends  of  equal  rights  and 
privileges  to  all  men."  — Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  III.,  No.  15,  p.  808, 

jFVom  Sidney  Rigdon,  Esq.,  Attorney  at  Law,  to  Major-  Gen.  James 
Aiiington  Bennet,  LL.  D.,  of  Arlington  House,  L.  I. 

"  Post-Office,  Nauvoo,  Illinois,  Jlpril  23,  1842. 

"Sir,— 

"  A  letter  has  appeared  in  the  New  York  Herald,  giving  a 
description  of  certain  individuals  in  this  city.  I  take  the  liberty  of 
addressing  this  letter  to  you,  that  I  may  answer  my  jmrt  and  show 
my  opinion.  The  subject  of  this  address  is  General  J.  C.  Bennett. 
General  Bennett  is  five  feet  five  inches  high,  one  hundred  and 
forty-two  pounds'  weight,  and  thirty-seven  years  of  age.  He  is  at 
once  Major-General  in  the  Nauvoo  Legion,  Quarter-Master-General 
of  the  State,  Mayor  of  the  City  of  Nauvoo,  and  Master  in  Chancery 
for  the  County  of  Hancock.  He  is  a  Physician  of  great  celebrity, 
and  a  successful  practitioner ;  of  great  versatility  of  talent ;  of  re- 
fined education,  and  accomplished  manners ;  discharges  the  duties 
of  his  respective  offices  with  honor  to  himself;  and  credit  to  the  peo- 
ple. He  possesses  much  decision  of  character  ;  honorable  in  his 
intercourse  with  his  fellows,  and  a  most  agreeable  companion ; 
possessing  much  vivacity  and  animation  of  spirit,  and  every  way 
qualified  to  be  a  useful  citizen,  in  this  or  any  other  city. 
"  Very  respectfully,  your  obedient  servant, 

"Sidney  Rigdojh,  Post-Master. 

"  J.  A.  Bennet,  Esq." 


Official  IVithdrawal  from,  the  Mormon  Church. 

"  May  17,  1842. 
"Brother  James  Sloan, — 

"  You  will  be  so  good  as  to  permit  General  Bennett  to 
withdraw  his  name  from  the  Church  record,  if  he  desires  to  do  so, 
and  this  with  the  best  of  feelings  towards  you  and  General  Bennett. 

"Joseph  Smith." 


CHARACTER   OF    THE    AUTHOR.  41 

"  In  accordance  with  the  above  I  liave  permitted  General  Bennett 
to  withdraw  his  membership  from  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of 
Latter  Day  Saints,  this  17th  day  of  May,  1842  ;  the  best  of  feehngs 
subsisting  between  all  parties.  Jabjes  Sloan, 

"  General  Church  Clerk  and  Recorder, 

"  City  of  Naqvoo,  May  17,  1842. 
"  The  above  is  a  true  copy  from  the  original. 

Okson  Pratt." 


After  my  withdrmoal  from  the  Church,  the  Prophet  and 
his  minions  withdrew  from  me  the  hand  of  fellowship,  and 

ANTE-DATED     the     MoRMON     BuLL    OF     ExCOMMUNICATION, 

and  presented  it  to  Professor  Orson  Pratt,  A.  M.,  one  of 
the  twelve  Mormon  Apostles,  for  his  signature,  some  days 
after  1  shoioed  him  my  official  withdraioal,  and  Mr.  Pratt 
REFUSED  to  sign  it  —  stating  as  his  reason  that  he  knew 
NOTHING  AGAINST  ME.  This  BuLL  was  signed  hy  the 
Mormon  Hierarchy,  who  forged  the  names  of  Lyman 
Wight,  who  was  then  in  Tennessee;  William  Smith,  who 
was  in  Pennsylvania;  and  John  E.  Page,  who  was  in 
Pittsburgh  !  —  These  are  three  of  the  Mormon  Apostles. 

Prentice  and  Weissinger,  the  able  editors  of  the  Louis- 
ville Journal,  in  their  paper  of  July  23,  1842,  in  speaking 
on  this  subject,  say, — 

"  Here  Gen.  Bennett  publishes  a  copy  of  a  highly  honorable  dis- 
mission from  the  Mormon  Church,  given  him  by  the  general  clmrch 
clerk  and  recorder,  at  Bennett's  own  request,  and  in  accordance 
with  Joe  Smith's  written  instructions.  Subsequently  to  this  with- 
drawal and  honorable  dismission  of  Gen.  B.,  Joe  Smith,  in  anticipa- 
tion of  an  attempt  on  the  part  of  the  General  to  expose  his  villanies, 
undertook  to  blast  Bennett's  character,  and  destroy  his  credibility, 
by  publishing  a  pretended  copy  of  a  withdrawal  of  the  fellowship  of 
the  Church  from  him,  giving  this  withdrawal  of  fellowship  a  date 
prior  to  that  of  the  honorable  dismission,  and  appending  to  it  the 
names  of  men,  who,  at  the  date  of  the  document,  were  more  than  a 
thousand  miles  off.  This  fraud  and  forgery,  on  the  part  of  the 
Prophet,  is  rendered  so  perfectly  palpable,  that  even  he  himself  can- 
not pretend  to  deny  it." 

JVeiv  Election  of  Mayor  and  Vice-Mayor  of  the  City  of  JVauvoo, 
on  the  Resignation  of  General  Bennett. 

"On  the  17th  instant,   General   John   C.  Bennett  resigned  the 
office  of  Mayor  of  the  City  of -Nauvoo,  and  on  the  19th,  General 
Joseph  Smith,  the  former  Vice-Mayor,  was  duly  elected  to  fill  Uio 
4* 


42  HISTORY   or   THE    SAINTS. 

vacancy  ;  and  on  tlie  same  day,  General  Hyrum  Smith  was  elected 
Vice-Mayor  in  place  of  General  Joseph  Smith,  elected  Mayor. 

"  The  following  vote  of  thanks  was  then  unanimously  voted  to 
the  Ex-Mayor,  General  Bennett,  hy  the  City  Council,  to  wit :  Re- 
solved by  the  City  Council  of  the  City  of  INauvoo,  that  this  Coun- 
cil tender  a  vote  of  thanks  to  General  John  C.  Bennett,  for  his 
great  zeal  in  having  good  and  wholesome  laws  adopted  for  the 
government  of  this  city,  stnd  for  the  faithful  discharge  of  his  duty 
while  JNIayor  of  the  same. 

"Passed  May  19,  1842.  Joseph  Smith,  Mayor. 

"  James  Sloan,  Recorder." 

From  "The  (Nauvoo)  Wasp,"  of  May  21, 1842,  Vol.  I.,  No.  6. 


It  will  be  seen  by  the  foregoing  documents,  that  I  was 
in  perfectly  good  odor  with  the  saints  and  their  rulers,  in 
the  Holy  City,  up  to  the  time  of  my  withdrawal  from  the 
Church,  and  even  afterwards.  So  it  appears,  from  the 
Prophet's  own  showing,  that  the  Lord  was  remarkably  well 
pleased  with  his  servant  John  C.  Bennett  so  long  as  he 
was  an  advocate  of  the  Mormon  creed ;  but  when  he  came 
out  on  the  pretended  man  of  God,  the  Lord's  Anointed 
Old  White  Hat  Prophet,  Joe  contended  that  he  always 
knew  Bennett  was  a  scoundrel.  It  appears,  therefore, 
that  either  the  Lord,  or  Joe,  was  mistaken.  Which  do 
you  think  it  was,  Christian  reader? 

I  will  now  conclude  by  giving  my  Patriarchal  Blessing, 
from  the  Holy  Hyrum  Smith,  the  Patriarch  of  the  whole 
Mormon  Church,  and  Heir- Apparent  to  the  Throne. 

A  Blessing  pro7iounced  on  the  Head  of  J.  C.Bennett,  son  of  J.  and 
jy.  Bennett,  horn  in  the  Town  of  Fair  Haven,  Bristol  County, 
Massachusetts,  August  3,  A.  D.  1804,  hy  Hyrum  Smith,  Patri- 
arch of  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter  Day  Saints,  Sep- 
tember 21,  1840. 

"  John  C.  Bennett  —  I  lay  my  hands  upon  your  head  in  the  name 
of  Jesus  Christ,  and  inasmuch  as  thou  art  a  son  of  Abraham,  I  bless 
you  with  the  holy  priesthood,  with  all  its  graces,  and  gifts,  and  with 
wisdom  in  all  the  mysteries  of  God.  Thou  shalt  have  knowledge 
given  thee,  and  shalt  understand  the  kej-s  by  which  all  mysteries 
shall  be  unlocked.  Thou  shalt  have  great  power  among  the  chil- 
dren of  men,  and  shalt  have  influence  among  the  great  and  the  noble, 
even  to  prevail  on  many,  and  bring  them  to  the  knowledge  of  the 
truth.  Thou  shalt  prevail  over  thy  enemies;  and  shalt  know  when 
thou  hast  gained  power  over  them,  and  in  this  thine  heart  sliall 
rejoice.     Many   souls   shall   believe,   because   of  the   proclamation 


CHARACTER   OF   THE    AUTHOR.  43 

which  thou  shalt  make.  The  Holy  Spirit  shall  rest  upon  thee, 
insomuch,  that  thy  voice  shall  make  the  foundation  on  which  thou 
standest  to  shake, —  so  great  shall  be  the  power  of  God. 

"  His  favor  shall  rest  upon  thee  in  dreams  and  visions,  which  shall 
manifest  the  glory  of  God.  Beloved  brother,  if  thou  art  faithful, 
thou  shalt  have  power  to  heal  the  sick ;  cause  the  lame  to  leap  like 
an  hart ;  the  deaf  to  hear ;  and  the  dumb  to  speak,  and  their  voice 
shall  salute  thine  ears ;  thy  soul  shall  be  made  glad  and  thy  heart 
shall  rejoice  in  God.  Thou  shalt  be  like  unto  Paul,  who,  according 
to  his  own  words,  was  like  '  one  born  out  of  due  time,'  and  shalt 
have  the  visions  of  heaven  open,  even  as  they  were  to  him. 

"Thy  name  shall  be  known  in  many  nations,  and  thy  voice  shall 
be  heard  among  many  people.  Yea,  unto  many  of  the  remnants  of 
Israel  shalt  thou  be  known,  and  when  they  shall  hear  of  thy  coming 
they  shall  rejoice,  and  thou  shalt  proclaim  the  gospel  unto  many 
tribes  of  the  house  of  Israel. 

"  If  thou  shouldst  step  aside  from  the  path  of  rectitude  at  any 
lime  because  of  temptation,  the  Lord  shall  call  after  thee,  because 
of  the  integrity  of  thine  heart,  and  thou  shalt  return  to  the  path 
frona  whence  thou  hast  strayed,  for  God  shall  illume  the  path  by  the 
light  of  his  everlasting  covenant,  and  with  its  light  thou  shalt  keep 
the  way. 

"  God  is  with  thee,  and  has  wrought  upon  thy  heart  to  come  up 
to  this  place,  that  thou  mayest  be  satisfied  that  the  servants  of  God 
dwell  here.  God  shall  reward  thee  for  thy  kindness,  and  thou  shalt 
be  fully  satisfied  hereafter.  Thy  soul  shall  be  enlarged,  thy  mind 
shall  be  clear,  and  thy  judgment  informed,  and  the  knowledge  of 
all  these  things  shall  be  made  clear  to  thy  understanding.  Thou 
wilt  have  to  pass  through  tribulation,  but  thou  shalt  remember  the 
promises  of  the  Lord,  and  shalt  be  comforted,  and  shalt  have  the 
greater  manifestations  of  the  power  of  God. 

"  Thou  must  travel  and  labor  for  Zion,  for  this  is  the  mind  and 
will  of  God.  Let  thy  voice  be  heard,  and  thy  prayers  and  sup- 
plications and  thy  rejoicings  be  known.  Turn  not  aside  from  the 
truth  for  the  popularity  of  the  world ;  but  be  like  Paul.  Let  God 
be  thy  shield  and  buckler,  and  he  shall  shield  thee  forever.  Angels 
shall  guide  thee,  and  shall  lift  thee  out  of  many  dangers,  and  dif- 
ficulties ;  and  after  thou  art  delivered,  thou  shalt  know  they  have 
done  it,  and  thy  heart  shall  be  comforted. 

"  Thou  shalt  have  power  over  many  of  thy  friends,  and  relations, 
and  shalt  prevail  with  them,  and  when  thou  shalt  reason  with  them, 
it  shall  be  like  Paul  reasoning  with  Felix,  and  they  shall  tremble 
when  they  hear  thy  words.  Thou  shalt  be  blessed  with  the  bless- 
ings of  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob,  and  if  thou  art  faithful,  thou 
shalt  yet  be  a  Patriarch,  and  the  blessings  thou  shalt  pronounce 
shall  be  sealed  in  heaven.  Thou  shalt  have  an  inheritance  among 
the  Saints  in  time  and  in  eternity,  for  this  is  the  will  of  God.  If 
tliou  continue  faithful  and  steadfast  in  the  Everlasting  Covenant, 
thou  shalt  have  power  over  the  winds  and  the  waves,  and  they  shall 
obey  thy  voice  when  thou  shalt  speak  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ. 

"  The  power  of  God  shall  shield  thee  while  thou  art  laboring  for 


44  '         HISTORY   OF    THE    SAINTS. 

Zion.  Thou  shalt  outride  the  storm  of  adversity  with  patience,  and 
shalt  be  crowned  with  immortahty  in  the  Celestial  Kingdom,  when 
Christ  shall  descend.     Even  so,  Amen. 

"  R.  B.  Thompson,  Scribe." 


CORRESPONDENCE. 

"  La  Habpc,  Hancock  County,  Illinois,  ) 
"June  18,  1842.  ) 

"To  Major-General  J.  C.  Bennett: 
"Sir,— 

"  By  your  solicitation,  I  raised  the  3d  Company  of  Cav- 
alry of  the  2d  Regiment  and  1st  Cohort,  of  the  Nauvoo  Legion,  and 
accepted  the  office  of  Captain.  It  is  now  rumored,  that  you  are 
about  to  resign  the  command  of  the  Legion,  which  induces  me  to 
tender  to  you  my  resignation. 

"  Yours,  respectfully, 

"John  F.  Olney, 

"  Capt.  2d  C.  2d  R.  1st  C.  K.  L. 
"Accepted,  June  20,  A.  D.  1842. 

"John  C.  Bennett,  Major-General.' 


"  Nautoo,  June  20,  A.  D.  1842. 
"Major-General  Bennett: 
"Dear  Sir,— 

"  I  would  respectfully  tender  you  my  resignation  of  the 
offices  of  Brevet  Major-General,  and  Cornet  of  the  Nauvoo  Legion, 
which  offices  I  was  pleased  to  accept  at  your  instance,  and  yours 
only,  believing  then,  as  I  now  do,  that  you  were  the  only  man  in  our 
city,  capable  and  qualified  to  hold  the  office  of  Major-General  in,  or 
to  command,  said  Legion.  Be  assured,  sir,  that  nothing  more  or  less 
would  tempt  me  to  resign,  than  the  fact  of  your  intention  of  doing 
the  same. 

"  Very  respectfully,  yours,  &c. 

"  Geo.  W.  Robinson, 
"  Brevet  Maj.  Gen.  and  Cor.  J\'.  L. 
"  Accepted,  July  1,  A.  D.  1842. 

"John  C.  Bennett,  Major-General." 


"Nautoo,  JuJy  3,  A.  D.  1842. 
*'  General  Bennett  : 
"Sir,— 

"  The  Sangamo  Journal  came  in  to-day.  I  expected  some- 
thing from  you,  but  was  disappointed ;  but  presumed  you  knew 
nothmg  of  the  new  arrangement  of  the  mails.  I  just  saw  Col.  C.  L. 
Higbee,  and  saw  the  affidavit  of  Mrs.  Schindle.     Good!     The  letter 

to  N ,  [Nancy, —  Miss  Nancy  Rigdon,]  C.  L.  H.  [Col.  Chauncy 

L.  Higbee,]  will  get.  F.  M.  H.  [Col.  Francis  M.  Higbee]  has  it, 
and  I  told  him  to  get  it.  I  will  leave  this  for  the  present,  and  await 
the  return  of  our  folks  from  meeting,  before  I  seal  it,  unless  the 
mail  should  come  before  they  return. 


CHARACTER    OF    THE    AUTHOR.  45 

"  2  o'clock.  Our  folks  have  returned  from  meeting,  and  the  way 
Joe  took  back  what  he  said  about  us,  was  a  caution.  He  said  he  had 
agreed  to  take  back  what  was  said,  but,  on  thinking  it  over,  he  could 
not  do  it,  for  any  man  that  would  sutler  Bennett  to  come  into  their 
houses,  was  just  as  bad  as  he;  and  he  would,  however,  say  this 
much,  that  one  continued  course  of  rascality  in  Mr.  Rigdon  and 
myself,  for  some  time  back,  was  the  cause  of  his  coming  out  on 
us,  and  if  that  would  be  any  satisfactory  confession,  we  could  have 
that  much,  and  do  what  we  pleased.  He  said,  tliat  whenever  he 
exposed  iniquity,  the  persons  chastised  would  turn  round  and  en- 
deavor to  injure  him.  'Now,'  says  he,  '■look  out!  look  out!! 
These  men,  I  will  venture  to  say,  will  come  out  on  me,  with  all  their 
power,  and  say  and  do  all  they  can  to  put  me  down  ;  but  do  not  be- 
lieve one  word  of  their  cursed  lies,  FOR  I  KNOW  I  AM  A 
PROPHET  !  !  ! '  Joe  soaped  over  Messrs.  Ivins,  Hunter,  and 
Pierce,  and  I  think  some  have  already  consecrated^  and  quite  likely 
the  balance  will.  Joe  did  not  say  much  about  Higbee.  He  stated 
that  a  young  man  came  down  to  see  him  the  other  day,  and  wanted 
to  know  why  he  came  out  on  him ;  but,  says  he,  '  I  have  settled  all 
matters  with  him,  and  shall  not  mention  his  name,  for  he  confessed 
his  sins  to  me,  and  begged  I  would  not  mention  him.'  Francis  will 
roar.  Yours,  respectfully, 

"  Geo.  W.  Robinson." 


"Nauvoo,  July  4,  A.  D.  1842 
"General  John  C.  Bennett: 
"Dear  Sir,— 

"  I  received  your  favor  by  Mr.  Hamilton,  to-day,  and 
have  done  all  in  my  power  to  accomplish  your  business,  according 
to  your  request.  *********  I  have  talked  with  Mrs.  G**, 
and  labored  hard  to  show  her  the  necessity  of  coming  out  to  befriend 
the  innocent,  and  defend  her  own  character  from  Joe's  foul  asper- 
sions ;  but  she  says  that  she  will  not  give  her  affidavit  now,  but 
thinks  that  she  will  in  the  course  of  two  or  three  days.  She  wants 
to  have  a  talk  with  O.  Pratt  before  she  gives  it.  I  have  seen  Pratt, 
and  he  says,  if  she  comes  to  talk  with  him,  he  will  tell  her,  that  if 
she  knows  any  thing,  to  tell  it,  let  it  hit  where  it  will.  There  were 
a  great  many  out  to  meeting  yesterday.  Smith  preached  —  said 
considerable  against  you,  and  stated  that  Messrs.  Robinson  apd  Rig- 
don had  requested  him  to  recall  what  he  had  said  against  them;  but 
instead  of  doing  it,  according  to  promise,  he  vilified  them  worse  than 
ever,  if  it  were  possible  to  do  it  —  no  other  names  mentioned  ;  but  he 
insinuated  very  hard  on  Francis  in  the  forenoon,  and  on  myself  in 
the  afternoon,  by  saying  that  those  who  had  resigned,  were  no  better 
than  yourself,  after  placing  you  at  the  lowest  grade  he  possibly 
could,  in  his  awkward  way  of  doing  it.  I  have  seen  Nancj',  [Nancy 
Rigdon,] — she  told  me  to  say  to  you,  ^  go  ahead,  and  make  of  her 
name  as  much  as  you  please,  in  relating  the  circumstance  which 
happened  between  Smith  and  herself  Mr.  Pratt  and  his  wife  say, 
that  if  ever  Smith  renews  the  attack  on  them,  they  will  come  out 
against  him.  and  stand  it  no  longer. 

"  Yours,  with  respect, 

"C.   L,   HiGBEE." 


46  HISTORY   OF   THE    SAINTS. 

"Nauvoo,  July  6,  1842. 

"General  John  C.  Bennett: 
"Dear  Sir,— 

"  Joseph  Smith  is  yet  thrashing  about,  tearing  up  the 
D****,  and  slandering  every  body.  He  has  not  Ht  on  Rigdon  and 
Robinson  very  severely  as  yet,  but  touched  them  slightly  on  Sun- 
day, also  myself;  and  we  must  keep  things  right  side  up.  Mrs. 
Schindle's  affidavit  is  a  good  one,  and  Mrs.  G**,  I  have  understood, 
was  going  to  give  hers.  Mrs.  Pratt,  I  think,  will  also  give  hers  — 
also,  Miss  Nancy  Rigdon.  Joe  is  operating  with  Mrs.  White,  and 
it  is  reported,  that  he  is  to  settle  upon  her  a  line  sum  soon,  or  return 
the  money  he  and  Sherman  took  from  Bill  White  some  time  ago. 
You  ought  to  see  Mrs.  White,  and  labor  with  her,  as  soon  as  possi- 
ble, and  secure  her  testimony,  because  it  would  he  great.  As  it 
respects  my  affidavit,  sir,  for  God's  sake,  my  sake,  and  the  sake  of 
my  people,  do  not  show  it  to  any  one  on  earth,  as  yet,  never,  until  I 
give  you  liberty.  Stiles  has  seen  it,  and  you  must  swear  him  that 
he  will  keep  dark  as  h***.  I  am  yet  true  as  death,  and  intend 
to  stick  or  die,  but  you  must  keep  my  name  back,  because  I  am  not 
ready  as  yet  to  leave ;  and  as  soon  as  you  hring  my  name  out,  they 
arc  certain  to  take  my  life  —  they  go  it  like  h***,  yet.  I  am  likely  to 
sell  my  property  here,  and  as  soon  as  I  do,  I  will  emigrate  like 
ligJitning.  Scorch  them  with  the  Missouri  writ  —  that  is  what 
scares  them  like  the  d****,  Porter  not  excepted. 

"  Your  dear  friend, 

Francis  M.  Higbee. 

"  P.  S.  I  think  I  will  be  out  to  Carthage  to  see  you  soon  :  come 
in  as  soon  as  you  can,  but  do  not  stay  here  long,  or  over  night. 
Pratt  is  true  —  Rigdon  is  good.  F.  M.  H." 


"  Nautoo,  July  5,  1842. 
"Doctor  Bennett: 
"  Dear  Friend, — 

"  Orissa's  health  is  yet  in  a  very  critical  situation,  and  we 
are  very  anxious  to  have  your  professional  advice, /o?-  we  do  notkno^o 
what  to  do  without  it.  I  will  give  you  as  accurate  a  description  of 
the  case  as  possible.  *********«_  Wp  \\\fih  you  to  write 
your  prescription  in  full,  and  send  it  to  Sarah's,  [Prof.  Orson  Pratt's, 
—  Sarah  M.  Pratt  being  the  sister  of  Mrs.  Orissa  A.  Allred,]  where 
we  shall  remain  until  Orissa  recovers.  We  all,  with  one  accord, 
send  you  our  best  respects.  Mr.  Pratt  would  write,  but  he  is  afraid 
to.  He  wishes  to  he  perfectly  still,  until  your  second  letter  comes 
out —  then  you  may  hear. 

"  Yours,  respectfully, 

"  William  M.  Allked." 


"  From  W.  F.  Parrish,  Esq.,  Attorney  at  Law. 

"  Massillon,  July  31,  1842, 

"Dear  Sir,— 

"  Prof  Wm.  M.  Smith,  M.  D.,  informed  me,  that  you  passed 
through  this  place  on  Friday  last,  on  your  way  to  New  York,  to  make 


CHARACTER    OF    THE    AUTHOR.  47 

an  exposition  of  that  infamous  scoundrel,  Joe  Smitk,  and  others  con- 
nected with  liim,  in  their  piracy  upon  the  human  family.  I  am  exceed- 
ingly sorry,  sir,  that  I  could  not  have  had  an  interview  with  you 
upon  this  subject,  for,  be  assured,  I  consider  any  means  which  can  be 
adopted  to  bring  such  a  ruthless  ruffian  to  justice,  as  most  laudable, 
and  not  only  worthy  the  attention,  but  imperatively  demanded  at  the 
hands  of  him  who  may  be  in  possession  of  facts  that  will  enable  him 
to  accomplish  that  object.  I  am,  however,  aware,  that  the  man  who 
attempts  it,  puts  his  life  in  competition  with  a  secret  influence  of  the 
most  dangerous,  dark,  and  damning  kind,  that  may  be  brouglit  to 
bear  upon  him,  at  times  and  places,  and  under  circumstances  least 
anticipated,  —  an  influence  that  can  be  known  only  by  those  who 
have  had  the  means  of  knowing  that  we  have,  and  which  it  is  hard 
to  make  others  believe  exists  in  an  enliglitened  community. 

"  I  have  known  you  by  reputation  for  some  time,  but  have  not 
the  pleasure  of  3'our  acquaintance  personally  ;  have  said  but  little 
upon  the  subject  of  your  connection  with  the  Prophet^  but  have 
thought  much,  and  am  not  disappointed  in  the  issue. 

"  You,  no  doubt,  have  learned,  in  your  close  connection  with  Joe, 
the  position  I  occupied  in  his  cabinet;  and  let  me  inquire  what  his 
present  feelings  are  toward  me  .-'  My  life  was  sought  for  a  time  ;  how 
is  it  now  .''  I  was  once  a  peculiar  favorite  of  the  Prophet  and  rulers 
in  Israel,  called  to  be  his  scribe  by  revelation,  wrote  his  early  history, 
kept  his  daily  journal,  superintended  his  mercantile,  land,  and  bank- 
ing speculations,  under  his  directions. 

"  1  joined  the  Church  in  1833,  and  withdrew  in  1837,  at  the  head 
of  some  forty  others,  and  shortly  after  was  excommunicated  by  a  Bull 
from  his  Holiness ;  and  not  long  after  that,  I  made  Kirtland,  the  stake 
of  Zion,so  exceedingly  unpleasant  to  him,  that  ho  got  a  revelation 
to  leave  between  two  days,  and  has  not  been  there  since. 

"  I  lectured  against  them  in  the  Temple,  twice  a  week,  during  the 
season ;  once  his  lickskillcts  attempted  to  expel  me  by  force  from 
the  sanctum  sanctorum,  but  did  not  succeed.  At  about  that  time, 
their  printing-office  fell  into  our  hands,  which,  if  they  had  not  con- 
sumed by  fire,  would  soon  have  been  speaking  the  truth  as  an  atone- 
ment for  an  ill-spent  life.  Before  I  left  them,  those  that  were 
disaffected,  met  frequently,  and  consulted  upon  the  matter,  and 
many  of  the  first  in  official  stations  of  the  Church,  were  convinced 
of  the  abominations  of  our  leader,  as  well  as  m)-self,  and  so  expressed 
themselves  in  our  private  councils,  to  wit.  Bishop  Whitney,  Orson 
Hyde,  Parley  P.  Pratt,  Orson  Pratt,  Doctor  Williams,  Cahoon,  and 
others,  but  had  not  the  moral  courage  to  come  out  publicly.  By  the 
by,  have  Orson  Pratt  and  Rigdon  left  them,  as  you  intimated  in  your 
communications.'  Please  write  me  who  among  the  leaders  have 
left,  and  what  the  prospects  are  for  breaking  them  up.  Can  it  be 
done  ?  Be  assured,  sir,  I  would  most  cliserfully  assist  you  in  this 
laudable  undertaking,  were  I  situated  so  that  I  could.  But  I  do  not 
see  how  I  can  possibly,  at  this  time,  come  to  New  York. 

"My  professional  business,  I  suppose,  I  might  leave,  as  I  have 
a  partner  in  Canton  ;  but  I  am  concerned  in  a  mercantile  establish- 
ment in  tills  place  also,  and  my  partner  is  absent,  and  will  be  for  a 
month  at  least. 


48  HISTORY    OF   THE    SAINTS. 

"  At  the  time  I  left  the  Church,  I  wrote,  by  way  of  exposition, 
several  newspaper  articles ;  and  the  expectations  of  tlie  public  were 
highly  raised,  in  anticipation  that  I  intended  to  publish  a  book, 
although  I  did  not  so  pledge  myself,  but  intended  to  publish  a 
weekly  periodical  of  that  character,  and  should  have  done  so,  had 
not  our  printing-office  been  burnt. 

"  I  am,  no  doubt,  in  possession  of  some  facts  that  you  are  not ; 
and  were  I  so  situated  that  I  could,  I  would  join  you  in  New  York, 
and  assist  in  your  publication. 

"  Your  obedient  servant, 

"  W.  F.  Parrish. 

"  General  J.  C.  Bennett,  New  York." 


Fi-om  Erastus  Webb,  M.  />.,  of  Cirdeville,  Ohio. 

"CiRCLETiLLE,  ^une23,  1842.      \ 

"  Dr.  Bennett:  | 

"  Dear  Sir,—  i 

"  Your  letter  of  the  7th  ult.  was  duly  received.     I ; 

have  conversed  with  the  Master  and  Secretary  of  Pickaway  Lodge.  [ 

The  Secretary  is  at  this  moment  making  out  a  certificate  under  the 

seal  of  this  Lodge,  in  answer  to  a  letter  received  some  time  ago, ! 

from  your  Deputy- Grand-Master,  making  inquiries  respecting  your| 

standing  in  this  Lodge.     The  result  will  be  favorable,  it  appear- i 

ing  on  record  that  you  were  a  member  of  tliis  Lodge  about  fourteen 

years  ago,  and  left  it  in  peace  and  friendship.     This  will,  of  course, ' 

satisfy  your  calumniators.  | 

"  Dear  sir,  \ 

"  1  remain,  very  respectfully,  1 

"  Your  friend, 

"  E.  Webb."     ' 


From  S.  Francts,  Esq.,  Editor  of  the  Sangamo  Journal. 

"  Springfield,  Illinois,  July  6,  1842.     | 
"  Major-General  Bennett  :  I 

"  Dear  Sir,— 

"Yours  of  the  2d  came  safe  to  hand  last  night. 
Your  first  number  appears  in  our  paper  sent  to  you  by  the  mailj 
which  brings  you  this.  These  publications  must  produce  intense; 
excitement,  and,  notwithstanding  every  effort  will  be  made  to  dis-| 
credit- them  by  Smith  and  his  friends,  the  people  icill  believe  them.\ 
You  certainly  have  undertaken  an  arduous  duty  ;  but,  judging  from- 
your  success  so  far,  the  friends  of  morality,  of  truth,  of  true  religion,, 
have  strong  confidence  that  you  will  succeed  in  tearing  away  the  I 
veil  that  has  hitherto  concealed  the  'polluted'  Monster,  who  styles] 
himself  the  Prophet  of  God.  i 

"  Go  on  witli  the  good  work.  You  will  have  the  best  wishes  of  | 
the  good.  Obtain  all  the  documentary  evidence  possible.  Jlffidavits: 
from  Miss  Rigdon,  and  other  ladies  mentioned,  would  produce' 
mighty  results.     We  hope  to  hear  from  you,  in  reference  to  the; 


CHARACTER    Or    THE    AUTHOR.  49 

Boggs  affair,  more  fully,  before  next  paper.  Should  you  succeed  in 
straiiDjling  the  Monster  with  whom  you  arc  now  grappled,  you  will 
have  hio-h  claims  to  rank  with  those  who  have  achieved  the  hiorhest 
good  for  their  species. 

"  Respectfully  yours, 

"S.  Francis."  ' 


•'  Spkingfielc,  July  10,  1842 
"Dear  Sir,— 


"  We  will  give  all  your  letters  designed  for  publication.  Joe 
flounders,  but  7jour  statements  arc  believed  hij  all — rest  assured 
of  this  fact. 

"  I  wrote  you  four  or  five  days  since.  Furnish  all  the  document- 
ary evidence  possible,  all  the  affidavits  possible,  and  send  us  your 
disclosures  at  St.  Louis.  Every  body  is  now  looking  to  the  Journal 
for  your  publications.  We  should  be  glad  to  have  from  your  own 
pen  an  account  of  the  Danites,  their  obligations  to  each  other,  and 
the  design  of  their  society.  Joe  must  come  down.  Governor 
Reynolds  will  be  obliged  to  demand  him,  and  innocent  individuals 
must  not  be  implicated  with  him.  This  last  matter  is  important. 
A  hair  of  the  heads  of  those  who  were  emploj'ed  by  him  should 
not  be  injured,  provided  they  will  sustain  you  and  tell  the  truth. 

"  1  have  been  writing  to  my  friend  Mr.  Chambers,  the  editor  of 
the  St.  Louis  Republican,  this  evening,  and  I  introduced  your  name, 
the  object  of  your  visit  to  St.  Louis,  and  solicited  for  you  his  kind- 
ness, and  all  the  assistance  and  counsel  you  may  wish.  Please  call 
upon  him,  and  mention  your  name  —  if  not  in  his  office,  leave  your 
address. 

"  Let  me  hear  from  you  promptly,  and  I  am  respectfully,  &c. 

"  S.  Francis. 

"  Generai,  J.  C.  Bennett.' 


OPINIONS  OF  THE   NEWSPAPER  PRESS. 

Fi-om  the  Sangamo  Journal  of  July  8,  1842  —  a  leading  ivestern 
paper,  published  at  Springfield,  the  seat  of  government  of  the 
State  of  Illinois,  by  S.  Francis,  Esq.,  Editor. 

"  The  public  will  be  astounded  at  the  statements  made  by  General 
Bennett  in  the  article  which  follows  from  under  his  own  hand. — 
That  in  this  day  of  light  and  intelligence  such  a  man  as  Joe  Smith 
should  be  able  to  collect  around  him  a  mass  of  people,  and  make 
Ihem  believe  in  his  shallow  and  miserable  scheme  of  imposture,  is 
matter  of  astonishment  now,  and  will  be  more  so  in  after  times. 

"  General  Bennett  is  the  individual  appointed  by  Judge  Douglass 
Master  in  Chancery  for  Hancock  County  —  a  most  important  and 
responsible  office,  from  the  fact  that  the   Master  in  Chancery,  in 


60  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS.  '  ' 

many  cases,  performs  the  duty  of  a  Jud^e  of  the  Supreme  Court 
We  liave,  therefore,  tlie  official  endorsement  of  Judge  Douglass, 
(wliich,  however,  is  not  needed,)  in  support  of  the  character  of 
General  Bennett  for  truth,  and  all  those  qualities  required  of  one 
who  fills  an  office  of  high  responsibility. 

"We  state  these  facts,  that  the  public  may  duly  appreciate  the 
attacks  of  those  men  upon  General  Bennett,  who  are  acting  with 
Joe  Suiith,  to  decry  and  to  destroy  him." 


I^rom  the  Louisville  Journal  of  July  23,  1842  —  a  periodical  second 
to  none  in  Amenca,  edited  by  George  D.  Prentice,  Esq.  and 
Weisinger. 

"  General  John  C.  Bennett  was  lately,  next  to  Joe  Smith,  the 
most  distinguished  member  of  the  Mormon  Church.  He  was  com- 
mander of  l;)ie  Mormon  Legion;  and  he  was,  and  still  is,  Master  in 
Chancery  for  Hancock  County  —  a  county  peopled  principally  by 
the  Mormons.  Some  time  ago  a  quarrel  broke  out  between  him 
and  Joe  Smith,  which  resulted  in  his  abandoning  the  Mormon 
Church,  and  laying  before  the  world  an  exposition  of  Smith's  char- 
acter and  conduct.  This  exposition,  as  far  as  we  have  read  it,  is 
one  of  the  most  startling  things  of  the  kind  wc  ever  saw.  More- 
over, it  is  deeply  interesting  to  the  public.  Joe  Smith  is  generally 
regarded  as  a  mere  miserable  fanatic ;  but,  although  he  may  be  a 
fanatic,  he  is  something  more;  he  is  the  Prophet  and  the  Com- 
mander-in-Chief of  thirty  thousand  Mormons,  all  of  whom  regard 
him  as  a  leader  sent  from  Heaven,  and  look  upon  his  counnands  as 
emanating  from  the  Most  High.  Backed  by  his  multitudinous  and 
deluded  host,  he  already  attempts  to  control  the  p<3litics  of  Illinois, 
and  defies  both  the  civil  and  military  authorities  of  that  State  to  call 
him  to  account  for  any  thing  that  he  has  done  or  may  do." 


From  the  Sangamo  Journal  of  July  J  5,  1842. 

"  The   publications   made   by    General    Bennett  are   believed  by 
all  men." 


F>'om  the  JFai'saw  Signal  of  July  9,  J 842  —  a  paper  printed  in 
Hancocli  County,  (the  place  of  Smithes  residence,)  and  edited  by 
Thomas  C.  Sharp,  Esq.,  .Attorney  at  Law. 

"  We  understand  that  General  Bennett  has  commenced  writing 
for  the  Sangamo  Journal  a  series  of  communications,  going  to  show 
the  rascality  of  Joe  Smith  and  his  clan,  and  tlie  dangerous  designs 
which  he  is  capable  of  forming  and  executing.  The  General  ask^ 
not  to  be  believed  on  his  own  assertions,  but  proves  matters  as  he 
goes;  he  is  a  man  of  great  energy  and  perseverance,  and  we  should 
not  be  surprised  if  he  made  the  Mormons  feel  like  stuck  hogs  for  i| 
few  months  to  come." 


CHARACTER    OF    THE    AUTHOR.  51 


From  the  Cleveland  Herald  of  July  19,  1842  — a  paper  edited  by 

J.  A.  Harris,  Esq. 

"  By  the  Sang-amo  Journal  we  have  a  portion  of  the  promised 
disclosures  touchinir  the  infamous  conduct  of  the  Prophet  Joseph 
Smith,  promised  by^General  Bennett,  but  recently  a  Mormon  high 
in  office  and  enjoying  Smith's  unbounded  confidence.  The  dis- 
closuies  show  corruption  such  as  had  rarely  been  developed  before 
the  days  of  the  Latter  Day  Saints ;  and  if  tlie  half  Bennett  states 
be  true,  Joe  richly  deserves  the  penitentiary  instead  of  reverence 
and  obedience  from  his  deluded  followers.  Bennett  g'ves  names 
freely,  and  calls  upon  many  witnesses  to  sustain  tlie  truth  of  his 
statements." 


From  the  Chicago  American  of  Jidy  28,  1842  —  a  paper  edited  by 
William  W.  Brackett,  Esq. 

"  FROM  NAUVOO. 

"  Two  gentlemen,  who  passed  through  holy  Joe's  city  on  Thurs- 
day of  last  week,  state,  that  soon  after  their  arrival  Joe  made  a 
speech  in  front  of  the  Temple.  The  subject  of  his  speech  was  — 
Bennett  —  the  Sangamo  Journal  —  Mrs.  Pratt — and  other  matters. 
Joe  swore  like  a  pirate,  and  used  the  most  obscene  language.  He 
appeared  to  be  much  excited,  and  it  would  be  an  act  of  charity  to 
suppose  that  the  holy  debauchee  was  drunk  as  well  as  mad. 

"  Joe,  it  is  said,  anticipates  a  requisition  frtr  his  person  from  the 
Governor  of  Missouri.  He  has  the  utmost  horror  of  the  idea  of 
being  given  up.  Joe  thinks  that  Judge  Ford  will  not  give  him  up 
if  he  should  be  elected  Governor. 

"  Joe,  it  is  further  said,  is  laboring  to  make  up  the  breach  with 
Ricrdon,  Pratt,  and  others,  by  offers  of  special  favor.  We  trust  that 
in  this  effort  he  will  not  succeed.  Joe  cannot  now  harm  these  men. 
He  will  not  injure  them.  He  dare  not  fulfil  his  threats,  and  his 
promises  are  not  to  be  relied  on.  —  We  again  call  upon  Messrs. 
Rigdon  and  Pratt,  as  they  regard  virtue,  honor,  and  the  reputation 
of  their  families,  to  come  out  from  this  Nauvoo  '  Babylon,  and 
Mother  of  Harlots,'  the  home  of  *  the  whoremonger  and  the  adul- 
terer,' and  '  be  not  a  partaker  of  her  plagues.'  The  developments 
which  have  been  made,  must  sink  Joe  Smith  to  the  lowest  depths 
of  infamy  in  the  eyes  of  all  honest  men.  He  must  fall  so  certain 
as  God  punishes  vice  and  rewards  virtue. 

"  Miss  Martha  H.  Brotherton  has  done  herself  honor,  and  the  cause 
of  virtue  is  greatly  indebted  to  her  for  the  publication  she  has  made. 
We  trust  her  example  will  be  followed  by  Mrs.  Pratt  and  Miss 
Rigdon.  The  holy  cause  of  insulted  virtue  —  of  wronged  innocence 
—  of  the  honor  and  character  of  families  —  demand  that  the  Im- 
postor   BE    UNVEILED   A.N'D    EXHIBITED    TO    THE    WORLD    IN    ALL    HIS 

DEFOKMiTY.  —  Swngamo  Journal,' ' 


52  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 


From  the  Chicago  American  of  August  1,  1849.  i 

"Orson  Pratt.  —  We  learn  from  the  Warsaw  Signal  that  this 
gentleman  Jias  gone  from  Nauvoo.     He  left  a  communication  with  ! 
his  friends  which  stated  that  he  iiad  been  induced  to  take  tliis  course  ! 
on  account  of  the  treatment  of  his  wife  by  Smith,  and  of  the  general  j 
management  of  the  Church  b}'  liim.  ■  I 

"  We  further  learn  from  other  sources  that  Smith,  finding  his  at-  j 
tempts  on  JNIrs.  Pratt  were  matters  of  notoriety,  went  to  her  liusband! 
with  a  manufactured  story  tliat  his  wite  was  a  base  woman,  and  that  i 
the  fact  was  well  known  to  him.  This  communication  had  such  ! 
an  effect  upon  Mr.  Pratt  —  at  once  blasting  his  happiness  and  the 
reputation  of  a  virtuous  woman  —  that  the  wretched  husband  left  | 
the  city.  I 

"  It  will  be  recollected  tliat  Mrs.  Schindle,  in  her  affidavit  detail-  ■ 
ing  the  attempt  of  Smith  upon  her,  said  — '  He  told  her  she  must 
never  tell  his  propositions  to  her,  for  he  had  all  the  influence  in  that  \ 
place,  and  if  slie  told  he  would  rum  her  character,  and  she  uould  be 
under  the  iiccessilij  of  leavinjr.'  ' 

"  Tlfis  same  scheme  has  been  carried  out  in  reference  to  Mrs.  : 
Pratt.  She  'told'  on  the  Impostor,  and  was  marked  by  him  for  i 
destruction.  In  a  public  speech  in  Nauvoo  on  the  14th,  Joe  spoke  ] 
of  tliis  lady  —  a  woman  whose  reputation  had  been  as  fair  as  virtue  j 
could  make  it  until  she  came  in  contact  with  Jiim  —  in  a  manner  , 
only  befitting  tlie  lowest  and  most  degraded  vagabond  in  existence,  j 

"  The  reader  can  lience  learn  the  state  of  society  at  Nauvoo.  I 
Tlie  facts  furnislied  are  presented  by  the  holy  Joe  himself  | 

"  We  do  not  know  what  course  will  be  pursued  by  Mr.  Pratt.  If  : 
he  sinks  under  the  denunciations  and  schemes  of  Joe  Smith  —  if  he  I 
fails  to  defend  the  reputation  of  himself  and  of  the  woman  he  has  ' 
vowed  before  high  Heaven  to  protect  —  he  will  fix  a  stain  upon  his  i 
character  v/hich  he  can  never  wash  out,  and  carry  to  the  grave  the 
pangs  caused  by  '  the  gnawings  of  the  worm  that  never  dies.' 

"  We   trust  that  he   will   secure    for  himself  a  more   honorable   : 
position  in  life,  and  will  come  to  tlie  rescue  of  the  fiime  of  his  lady, 
and  expose  the  infamous  course  of  the  Prophet,  as  becomes  a  man,  \ 
an  honorable  citizen,  and  a  sincere  Christian.  —  Sangamo  Journal."     \ 

"  [Cr  Joe  Smith,  in  a  speech  in  Nauvoo  on  Thursday  the  14th  j 
inst.,  (and  which  was  heard  by  two  gentlemen  of  our  city,)  said —  \ 
'  He  u-ished  Bennett  7cas  in  Hell!  —  he  iiad  given  him  more  trouble  i 
than  any  man  he  ever  had  to  do  with.'  Joe  was  undoubtedly  sin-  j 
cere  in  this  expression  of  his  wishes.  ' 

"  In  tlie  same  speech  he  declared  that  Mrs.  Pratt,  the  wife  of  Mr.    i 

O.  Pratt,  '  had  been  a from  her  mother's  breast.'     This  was 

the  lady  whom  Bennett  says  Joe  attempted   to  seduce,  and  who   ; 
resisted  all  his  efforts  with  the  heroism  of  insulted  virtue.'  i 

"  In  what  a  horrid  and  depraved  condition  society  must  be  in  I 
Nauvoo!  —  Sancramo  Jdjirnal." 

I 

Mr.  Pratt  returned  to  Nauvoo  the  day  after  he  left,  and  '■ 


CHARACTER   OF    THE    AUTHOR.  53 

has  since  been  nobly  bearding  the  lion  in  his  den.  His 
voice  is  lifted  like  ten  thousand  thunders  against  the  ini- 
quities of  the  Mormon  Prophet  and  his  minions.  Pratt 
is  an  honest  man. 


From  the  Cinciymati  Republican  of  July  26,  1842  —  a  paper  edited 
by  a  C.  Waller,  Esq. 

"  [11?  General  Bennett,  the  distinguished  seceder  from  the  Mor- 
mon faith,  was  in  town  on  Sunday,  and  stopped  at  the  Broadway 
Hotel.  He  has  made  so  many  startling  disclosures  of  the  iniquities 
practised  by  Joe  Smith  on  the  noodles  congregated  at  Nauvoo  that 
his  life  is  considered  in  danger  of  the  assassin's  steel.  He  left 
yesterday  morning  on  the  Robert  T.  Lytle,  for  the  east." 


From  the  Circleville  Herald  of  My  29,  1842  —  a  paper  edited  by 

T.  J.  Davis,  Esq. 

"  But,  from  his  intimate  and  confidential  relationship,  J.  C. 
Bennett,  a  Mormon  leader,  had  so  far  become  acquainted  with  the 
atrocious  criminality  of  Smith's  practices,  and  was  known  to  stand 
so  high  in  Smith's  confidence,  that  the  latter,  in  order  to  compel 
him  to  observe  secrecy  himself,  and  at  the  same  time  hush  up  the 
whisperings  and  murmurings  of  some  of  his  deluded  followers,  who 
could  not  surrender  all  sense  of  virtue  and  propriety  to  his  wicked 
and  impious  requisitions  under  the  plea  of  revelations  from  heaven, 
compelled  Bennett  to  make  an  affidavit,  and  make  it  public  in  the 
congregation,  to  the  effect  that  Smith  was  not  guilty  of  what  had 
been  charged  against  him  in  his  intercourse  with  members  of  the 
society.  Bennett  subsequently  withdrew  from  the  Church.  And 
now,  disregarding  the  oath  he  had  been  compelled  to  take  or  die, 
as  neither  legally  nor  morally  binding  upon  him,  he  has  published 
a  detailed  exposure  of  Mormonism  as  now  constituted." 


FVom  the  Cincinnati  Gazette  of  July  27,  1842  —  a  paper  edited  by 
the  Hon.  Judge  John  C.  Wright  and  J.  C  Vaughan,  Esq. 

«  MORMONISM. 

"  The  facts  developed  with  regard  to  the  conduct  of  Joe  Smith, 
the  leader  and  first  of  the  sect,  are  startling  in  the  extreme. 

"  The  details  are  too  disgusting  almost  for  publication.  They 
show  Smith  to  be  a  monster  who  is  using  the  power  he  possesses  to 
gratify  a  brutal  lust.  The  proof  on  this  point  is  conclusive.  Lead- 
ing western  papers  speak  of  the  fair  character  of  the  witnesses, 
and  regard  their  testimony  as  conclusive.  To  give  some  idea  of 
the  conduct  of  Joe  Smith,  and  of  the  manner  in  which  he  attempts 
to  carry  his  points,  we  give  the  testimony  of  Mrs.  Pratt." 
5  * 


54  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

From  the  Louisville  Journal  of  July  25,  1849. 

"  DU'  We  copy  below,  from  the  Sangamo  Journal,  the  second 
letter  of  General  Bennett,  portraying  the  character  and  detalHng  the 
horrible  and  revolting  conduct  of  Joe  Smith,  the  Prophet  and  leader 
of  tlie  Mormons.  The  exposition,  as  our  readers  will  see,  does  not 
rest  at  all  upon  the  personal  veracity  of  General  Bennett  himself, 
but  is  sustained  by  the  afhdavits  of  men  and  women  who  cannot  be 
mistalcen  as  to  the  facts  stated,  and  who  have  no  motive  for  misrep- 
resenting them.  Those  facts  are  proved  by  testimony  strong  enough 
to  send  any  man  on  earth,  prophet  or  no  prophet,  to  tiie  penitentiary 
or  the  gallows." 


From  the  Buffalo  Paiiiot  and  Journal  of  July  18,  1842. 

"TiiK  Mormons. — We  have  copied  into  another  column  the  Mor- 
mon disclosures  of  General  Bennett.  The  Sangamo  Journal,  in  a 
postscript,  says, — 

" '  We  have  another  communication  from  General  Bennett.  Its 
disclosures  are  horrible.  We  shall  publish  it  in  an  extra  as  soon  as 
possible.' 

"  Gen.  B.  evidently  writes  under  high  excitement,  but  there  is 
much  in  liis  communication  that  deserves  attention.  He  shows  up, 
as  we  believe,  in  its  true  colors,  one  of  the  most  stupendous  schemes 
of  villany  and  religious  fraud  and  imposture  that  the  world  ever 
saw.  '  Errors  of  opinion,'  said  Jefferson,  '  may  be  safely  tolerated, 
so  long  as  reason  is  left  free  to  combat  them.'  The  remark  is  true 
in  its  general  sense,  but  the  Mormons  form  an  exception.  Their 
errors  of  opinion  may  be  tolerated,  but  to  their  religious  errors  they 
have  superadded  a  military  and  political  organization  dangerous  in 
the  extreme,  when  wielded  as  it  is  by  one  so  unscrupulous  as  Joe 
Smith." 


F-om  the  JVe;/»  York  Herald  of  August  12,  1842 — a  rich  and  racy 
paper,  edited  by  Geiwral  James  Gordon  Bennett,  LL.  D. 

"  Arrival  Extraordinary.  — The  celebrated  General  John 
Cooke  Bennett  arrived  in  this  city  3'estcrday.  He  is  preparing  to 
publish  a  book,  wliich  is  to  be  a  full  and  complete  history  of  the 
Mormons,  public  and  private  —  the  secrets  of  their  religion  —  their 
mode  of  life  at  Nauvoo — the  celebrated  Prophet  Joe  Smith's  secret 
system  of  wives  —  their  mode  of  warfare  —  tactics  —  civil  and  reli- 
gious government  —  with  various  other  curious  and  perfectly  origi- 
nal matters.  It  will  be  one  of  the  richest  broclmrcs  that  ever  ema- 
nated from  the  press  of  any  country." 


From  the  Wahash  Express — a  paper  published  at  Terre  Haute. 

«  MORMON  TROUBLES  —  EXPOSE. 
"We  publish  a  very  singular  document  from  Gen.  John  C.  Bf.n- 
NETT,  a  distinguished  Mormon,  dated  at  Nauvoo,  June  27.     It  ap- 


CHARACTER    OF    THE    AUTHOR.  55 

pears  that  himself  and  the  Prophet,  Joe  Smith,  have  had  a  regular 
separation.  If  half  what  Gren.  Bennett  states  be  true,  the  new 
teacher  is  a  most  hardened  sinner,  deserving  a  place  in  the  Alton 
penitentiary,  instead  of  a  high  rank  in  the  community  of  Latter  Day 
Saints. 

"  The  writer  speaks  with  great  freedom,  and  in  a  spirit  of  daring 
b^ave^3^  Bennett  has  held  a  high  rank  in  the  Nauvoo  Legion  — 
a  body  of  troops  well  disciplined ;  and  he  is  spoken  of,  in  some  of 
the  eastern  papers,  as  a  man  of  eminent  military  talents." 


From  the  J^Tew  York  Sun  of  August  5,  1842  —  a  paper  of  very  ex- 
tensive circuiation  and  great  usefulness. 

"The  Mormon  Revelations.  —  We  watch  the  further  move 
ments  of  the  Mormon  expounded,  and  the  Anti-Mormon  expounder, 
with  some  degree  of  an.xiety,  as  affording  a  thorough  explanation  to 
the  philosophy  of  fanaticism,  whose  victims  we  so  frequently  find 
recorded  in  the  history  of  civilization.  This  pretty  family  quarrel 
between  the  Mormon  chiefs,  whether  it  originated  in  motives  of  pu- 
rity or  in  pitiable  incentives  to  gain,  will  carry  its  salutary  effects 
throughout  tlie  controversy.  We  doubt  not  that  Joe  Smith  is  a 
shrewd  and  cunnmg  man,  but  John  C.  Bennett  is  more  than  a  match 
for  him  even  in  these  qualities  of  modern  science.  There  was  an  al- 
most inconceivable  moral  courage  in  a  man  of  our  age,  who,  unedu- 
cated in  political  sciences,  could  call  together  a  mighty  host  of  un- 
civilized human  beings,  and  finally  adopt  the  holy  privileges  of 
the  ancient  proplietic  race. 

"  The  rule  of  our  male  Cassandra,  our  modern  Jacob  —  a  combined 
prophet  and  patriarch  —  could  not  last  forever.  He  has  degenerated 
from  the  religious  moralist  and  priest  into  the  lowest  grade  of  chi- 
canery and  vice ;  he  stands  before  us  a  swindler  of  his  community, 
an  impious  dictator  over  free  will,  and  now  in  his  most  glaring,  and 
even  hideous,  aspect — a  libertine,  unequalled  in  civilized  life  —  a 
Giovanni  of  some  dozens  of  mistresses,  and  these  acquired  under  the 
garb  of  prophetic  zeal.  However  unworthy  may  be  the  instrument 
of  this  exposition,  he  is  deserving  of  thanks,  and  may  be  absolved 
from  some  taints  of  immorality  by  becoming  an  evidence  for  the 
moral  commonwealth.  The  state  of  these  revelations,  although  not 
contained  in  the  '  Book  of  Mormon,'  or  viewed  by  the  divine  inspi- 
ration of  Joe's  stone  spectacles,  will  soon  assume  the  settled  princi- 
ples of  truth,  and  must  bear  conviction  to  the  misled  and  ill-treated 
sect. 

"  Bennett  now  has  blasted  the  spiritual  and  temporal  Joseph  Smith 
with  a  charge  of  horrid  crimes ;  and  Joe,  in  return  for  these  favors, 
will  attempt  to  blast  the  temporal  and  mortal  John  C.  Bennett  with 
a  charge  of  still  more  horrid  gunpowder.  Both  explosions  will 
make  a  noise  in  the  world  :  the  moral  one  from  the  mouth  of  fame, 
the  igneous  one  from  the  mouth  of  a  pistol.  At  all  events,  both 
combatants  appear  booked  on  the  calendar  of  fate  —  one  for  punish- 
ment in  the  next  world,  the  other  for  a  still  less  agreeable  infliction 


56  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

in  this  small  sphere.  Up  to  this  time,  however,  the  only  murder 
committed,  is  tliat  of  the  '  King's  English.' 

"  We  firmly  trust  that  the  punishment  of  Smith  will  be  heavy  in 
the  extreme  :  his  fate  should  be  a  warning  to  those  itinerant  mongers 
of  religion,  who,  in  every  guise  and  form,  infest  the  community ; 
who  steal  away  the  dearest  gifts  of  God,  and  render  desolate  firesides 
by  their  obscenity  and  lust.  We  have  now  an  exponent  of  the  mod- 
ern philosophy  of  religious  fanaticism  ;  the  rise  of  Mahomet  is  no 
longer  a  problem ;  his  effigy  of  the  nineteenth  century  has  been  de- 
stroyed. We  have  long  expected  this  discovery,  and  now  it  comes ; 
the  wires  are  withdrawn  from  the  animated  puppet,  and  the  excited 
Fantoceini  twist  and  turn,  without  harmony  or  concord.  The  ruler 
and  the  sceptre  have  passed  away  ;  h3'pocrisy  and  error  can  no  long- 
er bear  the  powerful  test  of  sincerity,  trutli,  and  morality. 

"  '  Error,'  observed  a  scholiast,  'begets  a  legion  of  followers,'  and 
the  Mormon  fanaticism  has  fulfilled  this  prediction.  It  has  conquered 
the  Nauvoo  Legion,  but  soon  it  will  exist  in  name  alone  ;  its  numbers 
are  fast  diminishing.  Combination  of  societies,  founded  on  religious 
and  social  basis,  will  be  henceforth  regarded  with  distrust,  as  weapons 
of  misrule  —  instruments  placed  in  the  hands  of  designing  oligarchs. 
Charity,  benevolence,  sympathy,  and  pure  religion,  require  no  asso- 
ciations to  forward  their  plans ;  they  are  the  ingredients  of  every 
well-formed,  cultivated  mind." 


From  the  St.  Louis  Bulletin  of  July  14,  1842  —  a  useful  paper, 
edited  by  Vespasian  Ellis,  Esq.  and  JVm.  T.  Yeomans,  Esq. 

"MoRMONisM.  —  The  disclosures  being  made  by  Gen.  Bennett  in 
relation  to  this  sect,  are  far  from  being  void  of  interest.  W^e  publish 
to-day  some  matters  from  Bennett  in  relation  to  the  attempted  as- 
sassination of  Gov.  Boggs,  which  are  at  least  of  sufficient  importance 
to  be  inquired  into.  One  of  their  own  papers,  the  Nauvoo  Wasp, 
while  defending  Smith  from  any  participation  in  the  matter,  gloried 
in  the  act,  for  it  says,  '  It  remains  to  be  hnotcn  who  did  the  noble 
deed.'  Apart  from  the  act  of  which  he  is  accessory,  there  are  now 
pending  against  him  in  this  State  indictments  for  crimes  sufficient 
not  only  to  predicate  a  demand  upon,  but  to  induce  the  Governor  of 
Illinois  to  give  him  up." 


From  the  JVeiv  York  Tattler  of  Sepietyiber  5,  1842  —  an  interesting 
and  infuential  periodical  issued  by  Dillon  and  Hooper. 

"  The  exposures  which  General  J.  C.  Bennett  is  making  of  the 
Mormon  humbug  in  the  west,  are  unique,  rich,  astonishing,  and 
comical  beyond  precedent.  It  seems  that  there  is  a  systematic 
course  of  carnal  delight,  for  the  especial  behalf  of  Joe  Smith  and  his 
favored  few. 

"  We  think  the  eff'ect  of  making  these  scandalous  things  public 
will  be  to  deter  people  from  giving  any  credence  to  the  Mormon  fa- 
natics." 


JOE    SMITH HIS    CLAIMS    AND    CHARACTER.  59 

ordained  by  John  the  Baptist,  in  the  presence  of  our  ancient  fathers, 
Joseph,  Jacob,  Isaac,  Abraham  and  Adam,  to  the  Aaronic  priest- 
hood ;  and  also,  on  the  same  page,  is  an  account  of  his  ordination 
to  the  Melchisedec  priesthood,  by  Peter,  James,  and  Jolin.  Now, 
what  better  evidence  can  be  adduced,  of  the  total  ignorance  of  this 
man,  respectmg  the  nature  of  the  priesthood,  than  is  here  afforded? 
What  is  the  othce  and  calling  of  a  priest  ?  St.  Paul  saj's,  it  is  to 
'  offer  gifts  and  sacrifices  for  sins.'  A  priesthood  cannot,  there- 
fore, exist  in  the  Christian  church  —  Christ  having  been  offered  as  a 
complete  sacrifice  for  all.  And  St.  Paul,  in  Heb.  vii.  18,  speaking 
of  the  priesthood,  says,  '  For  there  is  verily  a  disannulling  of  the 
commandments  going  before,  lor  the  weakness  and  unprojit.ableness 
thereof; '  and  in  the  17th  verse,  he  says,  '  For  he,  (the  Fatiier,)  tes- 
tifieth,  thou,  (Christ.)  art  a  priest  forever,  after  the  order  of  Mel- 
chisedec' Now  here,  as  by  the  wliole  tenor  of  the  apostle's  argu- 
ment, it  appears  that  the  Aaronic  and  Levitical  priesthoods  were 
done  away,  and  Christ  created  sole  priest,  forever,  after  the  order 
of  Melchisedec.  He,  then,  is  the  only  priest  known  to  the  Chris- 
tian religion.  But  this  Latter  Day  Prophet  has  risen  up  to  tell  the 
world  that  God  has  annulled  his  former  decrees,  and  revived  the  old 
priesthood  which  was  abolished  for  its  weakness  and  unprofitable- 
ness ;  and  that  Christ  is  stripped  of  the  office  which  was  given  hira 
forever,  and  he,  SmitTi,  made  successor  to  him  —  claiming,  thereby, 
to  be  equal  in  official  dignity  to  the  Mediator;  and  that  too,  when 
Christ,  according  to  the  apostles,  was  made  a  priest  after  the  order 
of  Melchisedec,  because  the  priesthood  would  be  in  him  unchange- 
able.    Was  there  ever  more  abominable  blasphemy.' 

"  By  reference  to  page  181 ,  Book  of  Covenants,  it  will  appear  that 
Smith  is  at  the  head  of  the  Mormon  Church.  '  And  thou  shalt  not 
command  him  who  is  at  the  head  of  the  Church.'  And,  in  the  Book 
of  Mormon,  page  66:  '  And  he  shall  be  great,  like  unto  Moses.' 

"  Search  the  annals  of  infallible  Rome  !  Read  the  history  of  her 
most  aspiring  pretenders,  and  where  was  there  ever  assumed  higher 
titles,  greater  authority,  or  more  immaculate  holiness,  than  is  now 
assumed  by  this  image  of  the  beast,  arisen  in  these  latter  days  ! 

"  In  reviewing  these  claims  of  Smith,  what  a  striking  contrast  is 
presented  between  him  and  the  apostles !  They  acknowledged  no 
head  but  Christ ;  they  sought  no  titles  but  those  of  apostles,  ser- 
vants, or  ministers  of  the  New  Covenant.  All  were  permitted  to 
receive  revelations  for  tiie  church  —  all  were  on  a  level,  as  regards 
their  authority.  But  Smith,  not  satisfied  with  calling  himself  a 
seer,  a  prophet,  and  a  revelator,  claims  to  be  '  great  like  unto  Mo- 
ses.' It  almost  seems  like  blasphemy  ;  but,  as  thousands  profess  to 
believe  in  the  claims  of  this  empty  pretender,  it  becomes  a  duty  to 
expose  their  weakness  in  the  most  effectual  manner  possible. 

"Let  us,  then,  ask,  where  is  the  least  point  of  analogy  between 
these  men  ?  We  read  of  Moses  being  sent  by  God,  from  the  burning 
bush  to  deliver  the  Israelites  from  under  the  tyranny  of  Pharaoh,  of 
the  signs  and  wonders  that  attested  his  mission,  of  his  leading  the 
people  out,  of  their  journeying  through  the  wilderness,  of  the  division 
of  the  Red  Sea,  of  the  cloudy  and  fiery  pillar  that  went  before  to 


60  HISTOEY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

guide  tJiem  in  tlie  way,  of  angel's  food  and  quails  for  their  subsist- 
ence, of  rivers  of  water  flowinij  from  the  Hinty  rock  to  satiate  tlieir 
thirst,  of  the  miraculous  durability  of  their  clotijing,  of  their  glorious 
reception  of  the  lively  oracles,  the  cloud  overshadowing,  the  moun- 
tain shaking,  the  trump  of  God  waxing  louder  and  louder,  the  voice 
of  Nature's  Autiior  heard,  his  glory  manifested,  the  people  quaking, 
and  all  this  in  attestation  of  the  divinity  of  the  mission  cf  Moses, 
and  the  laws  of  Jehovah. 

"  iSow,  what  is  there  in  the  history  of  your  Latter  Day  Prophet, 
that  can  compare  with  this  ?  Where  was  the  pov.'er  of  this  pretender 
to  work  miracles,  when  his  followers,  fainting  with  hunger,  were 
famished  on  tlie  way  ?  Where  was  he,  when  their  enemies  pressed 
sore  upon  them,  threatening  destruction  ?  Did  he  then  give  even 
the  slightest  assistance  to  his  people  ?  No!  on  the  contrary,  he  led 
the  flight.  Give  us,  then,  at  least,  one  well-authenticated  and  in- 
contestable instance  of  the  miraculous  power  of  this  man,  before  he 
is  claimed  to  be  great  like  unto  Moses. 

"  But  where  is  there  any  analogy  in  the  character  of  the  two  men  .' 
Moses  was  said  to  be  the  meekest  and  one  of  the  most  benevolent 
and  upright  of  men.  Now,  is  there  any  of  this  meekness  in  tlie 
character  of  Smith .''  Let  his  harangues  to  his  people  speak,  let  his 
own  writings  speak,  and  they  will  show  him  to  be  one  of  the  most 
vindictive  men  that  can  be  produced.  And  what  evidence  is  there 
of  his  benevolence  .'  At  the  very  time  that  the  widows  of  the  Church, 
and,  indeed,  the  poorer  class,  were  suffering  for  want  of  the  com- 
mon necessaries  of  life,  Smith  demanded  at  the  hands  of  the  people, 
twelve  hundred  dollars  per  year,  in  order  to  aggrandize  himseli",  and 
enable  him  to  live  in  luxury.  And  when  some  complained  that 
this  would  be  a  violation  of  the  rules  of  the  Church,  he  remarked, 
that  if  he  could  not  obtain  his  demand,  his  people  might  go  to  liell, 
and  lie  would  go  to  the  Rocky  Mountains  !  And  this,  too,  when 
the  Bishop  is  appointed  by  revelation,  to  deal  out  to  every  man 
according  to  his  wants.  Here,  then,  is  a  beautiful  specimen  of  his 
benevolence  — he  must  have  his  enormous  demands  satisfied,  though 
his  people  starve,  even  by  breaking  through  the  laws  of  the  Church. 
Where  was  there  any  thing  like  JMoses  in  this .'  But  look  at  his 
example  before  his  people.  At  the  very  time  that  their  enemies 
were  pressing  them,  he  was  found,  like  a  giddy  boy,  or  an  abandoned 
rencgado,  wrestling  for  amusement,  on  the  Sabbath  day  ;  and  when 
reproved,  said,  '  Never  mind,  it  is  a  time  of  war.'  Those  who  were 
with  Smith  at  the  periods  referred  to,  know  that  these  things  are 
true.     And  what  do  the)' show.'     Any  thing  but  a  Moses. 

"  Having  now  shown  the  emptiness  of  Smith's  claims,  let  us,  for 
a  moment,  inquire  into  his  real  origin  and  character.  The  following 
remark  is  from  the  Rev.  John  A.  Clark,  of  the  city  of  Philadelphia, 
but  formerly  of  Palmyra,  New  York:  — 

'■• '  Joe  Smith,  who  has  since  been  the  chief  Prophet  of  the  Mor- 
mons, and  was  one  of  the  most  prominent  ostensible  actors  in  the 
first  scenes  of  this  drama,  belonged  to  a  very  shiftless  family  near 
Palm}-ra.  They  lived  a  sort  of  vagrant  life,  and  were  principally 
knov.n  as  Money-Diggers.     Joe,  from  a  boy,  appeared  dull,  and  ut- 


JOE    SMITH HIS    CLAIMS    AND    CHARACTER.         61 

terly  destitute  of  genius  ;  but  his  father  claimed  for  him  a  sort  of 
second  sight,  a  power  to  look  into  the  depths  of  the  earth,  and  dis- 
cover where  its  precious  treasures  were  hid.  Consequently,  long 
before  the  idea  of  a  Golden  Bible  entered  their  minds,  in  their 
excursions  for  money-digging,  which,  I  believe,  usually  occurred  in 
the  night,  that  they  might  conceal  from  others  the  knowledge  of  the 
place  where  they  struck  upon  treasures,  Joe  used  to  be  usually  their 
guide,  putting  into  a  hat  a  peculiar  stone  he  had,  through  which  he 
looked  to  decide  where  they  should  begin  to  dig.'  " 


From  Mor monism  Unveiltd,  hj  E.  D.  Howe,  Esq. 

"  We  next  present  to  the  reader,  a  few,  among  the  many  depo- 
sitions which  have  been  obtained  from  tlie  neighborhood  of  the 
Smith  family,  and  the  scene  where  the  far-famed  Gold  Bible  had 
its  pretended  origin. 

"  The  divine  authenticity  of  the  Gold  Bible,  or  the  Book  of  Mor- 
mon, is  established  by  three  special  and  eight  collateral  witnesses, 
making  in  the  whole  eleven,  without  whom  there  is  no  pretension 
to  testimony ;  and  if  their  testimony  is  probable  and  consistent  with 
truth,  and  unimpeached,  according  to  the  common  rules  of  juris- 
prudence, we  are  bound  to  believe  them. 

"  Upon  the  principles  of  common  law,  we  are  prepared  to  meet 
them ;  and  tliey  are  offered  to  us  in  no  other  light.  Under  all  cir- 
cumstances, in  civil  and  ecclesiastical  tribunals,  witnesses  may  be 
impeached,  and  after  a  fair  hearing,  on  both  sides,  the  veracity  and 
credibility  may  be  adjudged. 

"  If  the  eleven  witnesses  are  considered,  from  what  has  already 
been  said,  unimpeached,  we  will  offer  the  depositions  of  some  of  the 
most  respectable  citizens  of  our  country,  who  solemnly  declare  upon 
their  oatlis  that  no  credit  can  be  given  to  any  one  member  of  the 
Smith  family.  Many  witnesses  declare  that  they  are  in  the  pos- 
session of  the  means  of  knowing  the  Smiths  for  truth  and  veracity, 
and  that  they  are  not  upon  a  par  with  mankind  in  general.  Then, 
according  to  the  common  rules  of  weighing  testimony,  the  eleven 
witnesses  stand  impeached  before  the  public  ;  and,  until  rebutting 
testimony  can  be  produced  which  shall  go  to  invalidate  the  respect- 
able host  which  are  here  offered,  we  claim  that  no  credit  can  or 
ought  to  be  given  to  the  witnet.ses  to  the  Book  of  Mormon. 

"  We  have  not  only  testimony  impeaching  the  moral  characters 
of  the  Smith  family,  but  we  show,  by  the  witnesses,  that  they  told 
contradictory  stories,  from  time  to  time,  in  relation  to  their  finding 
the  plates,  and  other  circumstances  attending  it,  which  go  clearly 
to  show  that  none  of  them  had  the  fear  of  God  before  their  eyes, 
but  v/ere  moved  and  instigated  by  the  devil. 

"  Palmyra,  Wayne  County,  N.  Y.,  Dec.  %  1833. 
"  I,  Peter  Ingersoll,  first  became  acquainted  with  the  family  of 
Joseph  Smith,  Sen.  in  tlie  year  of  our  Lord,  1822.     I  lived  in  the 
neighborhood  of  said  family,  until  about  1830 ;  during  which  time 
the  following  facts  came  under  my  observation. 


62  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

"  The  general  employment  of  the  family,  was  digging  for  money. 
1  had  frequent  invitations  to  join  the  company,  but  always  declined 
being  one  of  their  number.  They  used  various  arguments  to  induce 
me  to  accept  of  their  invitations.  I  was  once  plougliing  near  the 
house  of  Joseph  Smith,  Sen.,  about  noon,  he  requested  me  to  walk 
w^ith  him  a  short  distance  from  liis  house,  for  the  purpose  of  seeing 
whether  a  mineral  rod  would  work  in  my  hand,  saying,  at  the  same 
time,  he  was  confident  it  would.  As  my  o.xen  were  eating,  and 
being  myself  at  leisure,  1  accepted  the  invitation.  When  we  arrived 
near  tlie  place  at  which  he  thought  there  was  money,  he  cut  a  small 
witch-hazel  bush,  and  gave  me  direction  how  to  hold  it.  He  then 
went  off  some  rods,  and  told  me  to  say  to  the  rod,  '  Work  to  the 
money,'  which  I  did,  in  an  audible  voice.  He  rebuked  me  severely 
for  speaking  it  loud,  and  said  it  must  be  spoken  in  a  whisper.  This 
was  rare  sport  for  me.  While  the  old  man  was  standing  off  some 
rods,  throwing  himself  into  various  shapes,  I  told  liim  the  rod  did 
not  work.  He  seemed  much  surprised  at  this,  and  said  he  thought 
he  saw  it  move  in  my  hand.  It  was  now  time  for  me  to  return  to 
my  labor.  On  my  return,  I  picked  up  a  small  stone  and  was  care- 
lessly tossing  it  from  one  hand  to  the  other.  Said  he,  (looking  very 
earnestly,)  '  What  are  you  going  to  do  with  that  stone.' '  '  Throw 
it  at  the  birds,'  I  replied.  '  No,'  said  the  old  man,  '  it  is  of  great 
worth; '  and  upon  this,  I  gave  it  to  him.  '  Now,'  says  he,  '  if  you 
only  knew  the  value  there  is  back  of  my  house,'  and  pointing  to  a 
place  near, '  there,'  exclaimed  he, '  is  one  cliest  of  gold,  and  another  of 
silver.'  He  then  put  the  stone  which  I  had  given  him,  into  his  hat, 
and  stooping  forward,  ho  bowed  and  made  sundry  manoeuvres,  quite 
similar  to  those  of  a  stool-pigeon.  At  length,  he  took  down  his  hat, 
and,  being  very  much  exhausted,  said,  in  a  faint  voice,  '  If  you 
knew  what  I  had  seen,  you  would  believe.'  To  see  the  old  man 
thus  try  to  impose  upon  me,  I  confess,  rather  had  a  tendency  to 
excite  contempt  ti)an  pity.  Yet  I  thought  it  best  to  conceal  my 
feelings,  preferring  to  appear  the  dupe  ol  my  credulity,  than  to  ex- 
pose myself  to  his  resentment.  His  son  Alvin  then  went  through 
with  tlie  same  performance,  which  was  equally  disgusting. 

"  Anotlier  time,  the  said  Joseph,  Sen.,  told  me  that  the  best  time 
for  digging  money,  was  in  the  heat  of  summer,  wlien  the  heat  of 
the  sun  caused  the  chests  of  money  to  rise  near  the  top  of  the 
ground.  '  You  notice,'  said  he,  '  tlie  large  stones  on  the  top  of  the 
ground  —  we  call  them  rocks,  and  they  truly  appear  so,  but  they  are, 
in  fact,  most  of  them  chests  of  money  raised  by  the  heat  of  the  sun.' 

"  At  another  time,  he  told  me  that  the  ancient  inhabitants  of  this 
country  used  camels  instead  of  horses.  For  proof  of  this  fact,  he 
stated  that  in  a  certain  hill,  on  the  farm  of  Mr.  Cuyler,  there  was  a 
cave  containing  an  immense  value  of  gold  and  silver,  stands  of  arms, 
also,  a  saddle  for  a  camel,  hanging  on  a  peg,  at  one  side  of  the  cave. 
I  asked  him  of  what  kind  of  wood  the  peg  was.  He  could  not  tell, 
but  said  it  had  become  similar  to  stone  or  iron. 

"  The  old  man,  at  last,  laid  a  plan  which  he  thought  would  ac- 
complish his  design.  His  cows  and  mine  had  been  gone  for  some 
time,  and  were  not  to  be  found,  notwithstanding  our  dihgent  search 
for  them.     Day  after  day  was  spent  in  fruitless  search,  until,  at 


JOE    SMITH HIS    CLAIMS    AND  CHARACTER.         63 

length,  he  proposed  to  find  them  by  his  art  of  divination.  So  he 
took  his  stand  near  the  corner  of  his  house,  with  a  small  stick  in 
his  hand,  and  made  several  strange  and  peculiar  motions,  and  then 
said  he  could  go  directly  to  the  cows.  So  he  started  off,  and  went 
into  the  woods,  about  one  hundred  rods  distant,  and  found  the  lost 
cows.  But,  on  finding  out  the  secret  of  the  mystery,  Harrison  had 
found  the  cows,  and  drove  them  to  the  above-named  place,  and 
milked  them.  So  that  this  stratagem  turned  out  rather  more  to  liis 
profit  than  it  did  to  my  edification.  The  old  man,  finding  that  all  his 
efforts  to  make  me  a  money-digger  had  proved  abortive,  at  length 
ceased  his  importunities.  One  circumstance,  however,  I  will  men- 
tion, before  leaving  him.  Some  time  before  young  Joseph  found, 
or  pretended  to  find,  the  gold  plates,  the  old  man  told  me  that  m 
Canada,  there  had  been  a  book  found,  in  a  hollow  tree,  that  gave  an 
account  of  the  first  settlement  of  this  country,  before  it  was  dis- 
covered by  Columbus. 

"  In  the  month  of  August,  1827,  I  was  hired  by  Joseph  Smith, 
Jr.,  to  go  to  Pennsylvania,  to  move  his  wife's  household  furniture 
up  to  Manchester,  where  his  wife  then  was.  When  we  arrived  at 
Mr.  Hale's,  in  Harmony,  Pa.,  from  which  place  he  had  taken  his 
wife,  a  scene  presented  itself,  truly  affecting.  His  father-in-law 
(Mr.  Hale,)  addressed  Joseph,  in  a  flood  of  tears  :  '  You  have  stolen 
my  daughter,  and  married  her.  I  had  much  rather  have  followed 
her  to  her  grave.  You  spend  your  time  in  digging  for  money  — 
pretend  to  see  in  a  stone,  and  thus  try  to  deceive  people.'  Joseph 
wept,  and  acknowledged  he  could  not  see  in  a  stone  now,  nor  never 
could;  and  that  his  former  pretensions  in  that  respect,  were  all 
false.  He  then  promised  to  give  up  his  old  habits  of  digging  for 
money  and  looking  into  stones.  Mr.  Hale  told  Joseph,  if  he  would 
move  to  Pennsylvania  and  work  for  a  living,  he  would  assist  him  in 
getting  into  business.  Joseph  acceded  to  this  proposition.  I  then 
returned  with  Joseph  and  his  wife  to  Manchester.  One  circum- 
stance occurred,  on  the  road,  worthy  of  notice,  and  1  believe  this  is 
the  only  instance  where  Joe  ever  exhibited  true  Yankee  wit.  On  our 
journey  to  Pennsylvania,  we  could  not  make  the  exact  change  at 
the  toll  gate  near  Ithaca.  Joseph  told  the  gate  tender  that  he  would 
*  hand '  him  the  toll  on  his  return,  as  he  was  coming  back  in  a  few 
days.  On  our  return,  Joseph  tendered  to  him  25  cents,  the  toll 
being  12^.  He  did  not  recognize  Smith,  so  he  accordingly  gave 
him  back  the  12.^  cents.  After  we  had  passed  the  gate,  I  asked  him 
if  he  did  not  agree  to  pay  double  gatage  on  our  return.'  '  No,'  said 
he,  '  I  agreed  to  hand  it  to  him,  and  I  did,  but  he  handed  it  back 
again.' 

"  Joseph  told  me,  on  his  return,  that  he  intended  to  keep  the 
promise  which  he  had  made  to  his  father-in-law ;  '  but,'  said  he,  '  it 
will  be  hard  for  me,  for  they  will  all  oppose,  as  they  want  me  to 
look  in  the  stone  for  them  to  dig  money.'  And,  in  fact,  it  was  as 
he  predicted.  They  urged  him,  day  after  day,  to  resume  his  old 
practice  of  looking  in  the  stone.  He  seemed  much  perplexed  as  to 
the  course  he  should  pursue.  In  this  dilemma,  he  made  me  his 
confidant,  and  told  me  what  daily  transpired  in  the  family  of  Smiths. 
One  day   he   came   and  greeted  me,  with  a  joyful  countenance. 


64  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS 

Upon  asking  llie  cause  of  his  unusual  happiness,  he  replied  in  the 
following  language  :  '  As  I  was  passing,  yesterday,  across  the  woods 
after  a  heavy  shower  of  rain,  I  found,  in  a  hollow,  some  beautifu. 
white  sand,  that  had  been  washed  up  by  the  water.  I  took  otf  my 
frock,  and  tied  up  several  quarts  of  it,  and  then  went  home.  On 
my  entering  the  house,  I  found  the  family  at  the  table,  eating  din- 
ner. They  were  all  anxious  to  know  the  contents  of  my  frock.  At 
that  moment,  I  happened  to  think  of  what  I  had  heard  about  a  his- 
tory found  in  Canada,  called  the  golden  Bible  ;  so  I  very  gravely 
told  them  it  was  the  golden  Bible.  To  my  surprise,  they  were 
credulous  enough  to  believe  what  I  said.  Accordingly  I  told  them 
that  I  had  received  a  commandment  to  let  no  one  see  it;  for,  says 
1,  no  man  can  see  it  with  the  naked  eye  and  live.  However,  I 
offered  to  take  out  the  book  and  sliovv  it  to  them,  but  they  refused 
to  see  it,  and  left  the  room.  Now,'  said  Joe,  '  I  have  got  the  damned 
fools  fixed,  and  will  carry  out  the  fun.'  Notwithstanding,  he  told 
me  he  had  no  such  book,  and  believed  there  never  was  any  such 
book,  yet,  he  told  me  that  he  actually  went  to  Willard  Chase,  to  get 
him  to  make  a  chest,  in  which  he  might  deposit  his  golden  Bible. 
But,  as  Chase  would  not  do  it,  he  made  a  box  himself,  of  clapboards, 
and  put  it  into  a  pillow-case,  and  allowed  people  only  to  lift  it,  and 
feel  of  it  through  the  case. 

"  In  the  fall  of  1827,  Joseph  wanted  to  go  to  Pennsylvania.  His 
brother-in-law  had  come  to  assist  him  in  moving,  biit  he  himself 
was  out  of  money.  He  wished  to  borrow  the  money  of  me,  and  he 
presented  Mr.  Hale  as  security.  I  told  him  in  case" he  could  obtain 
assistance  from  no  other  source,  I  would  let  him  have  some  money. 
Joseph  then  went  to  Palmyra;  and  said  he,  'I  there  met  that 
damn  fool  Martin  Harris,  and  told  him  that  I  had  a  command  to  ask 
the  first  honest  man  I  met  with  for  fifty  dollars  in  money,  and  he 
would  let  me  have  it.  I  saw  at  once,'  said  Joe, '  that  it  took  his  no- 
tion, for  he  promptly  gave  me  the  fifty.' 

"  Joseph  thought  this  sum  was  sufficient  to  bear  his  expenses  to 
Pennsylvania ;  so  he  immediately  started  off,  and  since  that  time  I 
have  not  been  much  in  his  society.  While  the  Smiths  were  living  at 
Waterloo,  William  visited  my  neighborhood  ;  and,  upon  my  inquiry 
how  they  came  on,  he  replied,  '  We  do  better  there  than  here ;  we, 
were  too  well  known  here  to  do  much.'  Peter  Ingersoll. 

"State  of  New  York,  ) 
Wayno  County,  \  ''• 

"I  certify,  that  on  this  9th  day  of  December,  1833,  personally 
appeared  before  me  the  above-named  Peter  Ingersoll,  to  me  known, 
and  made  oath,  according  to  law,  to  the  truth  of  the  above  state- 
ment. "Th.  p.  Baldwin, 

"Judge  of  Wayne  County  Court.'' 


"  Testini07iy  of  ffllliam  Stafford. 
"  Manchester,  Ontario  County,  N.  Y.  December  8,  1833. 
"  I,  William   Stafford,  having  been   called  upon   to  give  a  true 
Statement  of  my  knowledge,  concerning  the  character  and  conduct 


JOE    SMITH HIS    CLAIMS    AND    CHARACTER.        65 

of  the  family  of  Smiths,  known  to  the  world  as  the  founders  of  the 
Mormon  sect,  do  say,  that  I  first  became  acquainted  with  Joseph, 
Sen.,  and  his  family,  in  the  year  1820.  They  lived,  at  that  time,  in 
Palmyra,  about  one  mile  and  a  half  from  my  residence.  A  great 
part  of  their  time  was  devoted  to  digging  for  money  :  especially  in 
the  night  time,  when  they  said  the  money  could  be  most  easily  ob- 
tained. I  have  heard  them  tell  marvellous  tales,  respecting  the 
discoveries  tliey  had  made  in  their  peculiar  occupation  of  money 
digging.  They  would  say,  for  instance,  that  in  such  a  place,  in  such 
a  hill,  on  a  certain  mans  farm,  there  were  deposited  keys,  barrels 
and  hogsheads  of  coined  silver  and  gold — bars  of  gold,  golden 
images,  brass  kettles  filled  with  gold  and  silver  —  gold  candlesticks, 
swords,  t&c.  &c.  They  would  say,  also,  that  nearly  all  the  hills  in 
this  part  of  New  York,  were  tlirown  up  by  human  hands,  and  in 
them  were  large  caves,  which  Joseph,  Jr.,  could  see,  by  placing  a 
stone  of  singular  appearance  in  his  hat,  in  such  a  manner  as  to 
exclude  all  light;  at  which  time  they  pretended  he  could  see  all 
things  within  and  under  the  earth, — that  he  could  see  within  the 
above-mentioned  caves,  large  gold  bars  and  silver  plates, — that  he 
could  also  discover  the  spirits  in  whose  charge  these  treasures  were, 
clothed  in  ancient  dress.  At  certain  times,  these  treasures  could  be 
obtained  very  easily ;  at  others,  the  obtaining  of  them  was  difficult. 
The  facility  of  approaching  them,  depended,  in  a  great  measure,  on 
the  state  of  the  moon.  New  moon  and  good  Friday,  I  believe,  were 
regarded  as  the  most  favorable  times  for  obtaining  these  treasures 
These  tales  I  regarded  as  visionary.  However,  being  prompted  by 
curiosity,  I  at  length  accepted  of  their  invitations,  to  join  them  in 
their  nocturnal  excursions.  I  will  now  relate  a  few  incidents 
attending  these  excursions. 

"Joseph  Smith,  Sen.,  came  to  me  one  night,  and  told  me,  that 
Joseph,  Jr.,  had  been  looking  in  his  glass,  and  had  seen,  not  many 
rods  from  his  house,  two  or  three  kegs  of  gold  and  silver,  some  feet 
under  the  surface  of  the  earth ;  and  that  none  others  but  the  elder 
Joseph  and  myself  could  get  them.  I  accordingly  consented  to  go, 
and  early  in  the  evening  repaired  to  the  place  of  deposit.  Joseph, 
Sen.,  first  made  a  circle,  twelve  or  fourteen  feet  in  diameter.  This 
circle,  said  he,  contains  the  treasure.  He  then  stuck  in  the  ground 
a  row  of  witch-hazel  sticks,  around  the  said  circle,  for  the  purpose 
of  keeping  off  the  evil  spirits.  Within  this  circle  he  made  another, 
of  about  eight  or  ten  feet  in  diameter.  He  walked  around  three 
times  on  the  periphery  of  tliis  last  circle,  muttering  to  himself  some- 
thing which  I  could  not  understand.  He  next  stuck  a  steel  rod  in 
the  centre  of  the  circles,  and  then  enjoined  profound  silence  upon  us, 
lest  we  should  arouse  the  evil  spirit  who  had  the  charge  of  these 
treasures.  After  we  had  dug  a  trench  about  five  feet  in  depth 
around  the  rod,  the  old  man,  by  signs  and  motions,  asked  leave 
of  absence,  and  went  to  the  house  to  inquire  of  young  Joseph  the 
cause  of  our  disappointment.  He  soon  returned,  and  said,  that 
Joseph  had  remained  all  this  time  in  the  house,  looking  in  his  stone 
and  watching  the  motions  of  the  evil  spirit  — that  he  saw  the  spirit 
come  up  to  the  ring,  and  as  soon  aa  it  beheld  the  cone  which  we  had 
6  * 


66  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

fotmed  around  tlie  rod,  it  caused  the  money  to  sink.  We  then  went 
into  the  house,  and  the  old  man  observed,  that  we  had  made  a  mis- 
take in  the  commencement  of  the  operation ;  if  it  had  not  been  for 
that,  said  he,  we  should  have  got  the  money. 

"At  another  time,  they  devised  a  scheme,  by  which  they  might 
satiate  their  hunger  with  the  mutton  of  one  of  my  sheep.  They 
had  seen  in  my  flock  of  sheep,  a  large,  fat,  black  wether.  Old 
Joseph  and  one  of  the  boys  came  to  me  one  day,  and  said  that  Joseph, 
Jr.,  had  discovered  some  very  remarkable  and  valuable  treasures, 
which  could  be  procured  only  in  one  way.  That  way  was  as  fol- 
lows :  —  That  a  black  sheep  should  be  taken  on  to  the  ground  where 
the  treasures  were  concealed  —  that  after  cutting  its  throat,  it  should 
be  led  around  a  circle  while  bleeding.  This  being  done,  the  wrath  of 
the  evil  spirit  would  be  appeased :  the  treasures  could  then  be  ob- 
tained, and  my  share  of  them  was  to  be  four-fold.  To  gratify  my 
curiosity,  I  let  them  have  a  large  fat  sheep.  They  afterwards  in- 
formed me  that  the  sheep  was  killed  pursuant  to  commandment; 
but  as  there  was  some  mistake  in  the  process,  it  did  not  have  the 
desired  effect.  This,  I  believe,  is  the  only  time  they  ever  made 
money-digging  a  profitable  business.  They,  however,  had  around 
them  constantly  a  worthless  gang,  whose  employment  it  was  to  dig 
money  nights,  and  who,  day  times,  had  more  to  do  with  mutton 
than  money. 

"  When  they  found  that  the  people  of  this  vicinity  would  no 
longer  put  any  faith  in  their  schemes  for  digging  money,  they  then 
pretended  to  find  a  Gold  Bible,  of  which,  the}'  said,  the  Book  of  Mor- 
mon was  only  an  introduction.  This  latter  book  was  at  length  fitted 
for  the  press.  No  means  were  taken  by  any  individual  to  suppress 
its  publication :  no  one  apprehended  any  danger  from  a  book,  origi- 
nating w\ih  individuals  who  had  neither  influence,  honesty  or  honor. 
Tiie  two  Josephs  and  Hiram,  promised  to  show  me  the  plates,  after 
the  Book  of  Mormon  was  translated.  But,  afterwards,  they  pre- 
tended to  have  received  an  express  commandment,  forbidding  them 
to  show  the  plates.  Respecting  the  manner  of  receiving  and  trans- 
lating the  Book  of  Mormon,  their  statements  were  always  discordant. 
The  elder  Joseph  would  say  that  he  had  seen  the  plates,  and  that  he 
knew  them  to  be  gold  ;  at  other  times  he  would  say  that  they  looked 
like  gold ;  and  other  times  he  would  say  he  had  not  seen  the  plates 
at  all.  I  have  thus  briefly  stated  a  few  of  the  facts,  in  relation  to 
the  conduct  and  character  of  this  family  of  Smiths ;  probably  suffi- 
cient has  been  stated  without  mv  going  into  detail. 

"  William  Stafford. 

"State  of  New  York,) 
Wayne  County,  j     ' 

"  I  certify,  that  on  this  9th  day  of  December,  1833,  personally 
appeared  before  me  William  Stafford,  to  me  known,  and  made  oath 
to  the  truth  of  the  above  statement,  and  signed  the  same. 

"Th.  p.  Baldwin, 
"  Judge  of  Wayne  County  Court." 


JOE    SMITH HIS    CLAIMS    AND    CHARACTER.         67 

"  Testimony  of  Willard  CJtase. 

"  Manchester,  Ontario  County,  New  York,  1833. 

"  1  became  acquainted  with  the  Smith  family,  known  as  the  authors 
of  the  Mormon  Bible,  in  the  year  lti2G.  At  that  time,  they  were 
engaged  in  the  money-digging  business,  which  they  followed  until 
the  latter  part  of  the  season  of  1827.  In  the  year  lb22  I  was  en- 
gaged in  digging  a  well.  I  employed  Alvin  and  Joseph  Smith  to 
assist  me;  the  latter  of  whom  is  now  known  as  the  Mormon  Prophet. 
After  digging  about  twenty  feet  below  tlie  surface  of  the  earth,  we 
discovered  a  singularly  appearing  stone,  which  excited  my  curiosity. 
I  brought  it  to  the  top  of  the  well,  and  as  we  were  examining  it, 
Joseph  put  it  into  his  hat,  and  then  his  face  into  the  top  of  his  hat. 
It  has  been  said  by  Smith,  that  he  brought  the  stone  from  the  well ; 
but  this  is  false.  There  was  no  one  in  the  well  but  myself.  The 
next  morning  he  came  to  me,  and  wished  to  obtain  the  stone,  alleg- 
ing that  he  could  see  in  it;  but  I  told  him  I  did  not  wish  to  part  with 
it,  on  account  of  its  being  a  curiosity,  but  would  lend  it.  After 
obtaining  the  stone,  he  began  to  publish  abroad  what  wonders  he 
could  discover  by  looking  in  it,  and  made  so  much  disturbance 
among  the  credulous  part  of  community,  that  I  ordered  tlie  stone  to 
be  returned  to  me  again.  He  had  it  in  his  possession  about  two 
years.  I  believe,  some  time  in  1825,  Hiram  Smith,  (brother  of  Joseph 
Smith,)  came  to  me,  and  wished  to  borrow  the  same  stone,  alleging 
that  they  wanted  to  accomplish  some  business  of  importance,  which 
could  not  very  well  be  done  without  the  aid  of  the  stone.  I  told 
him  it  was  of  no  particular  worth  to  me,  but  merely  wished  to  keep 
it  as  a  curiosity,  and  if  he  would  pledge  me  his  word  and  honor  tliat 
I  should  have  it  when  called  for,  he  might  take  it;  which  he  did, 
and  took  the  stone.  I  thought  I  could  rely  on  his  word  at  this  time, 
as  he  had  made  a  profession  of  religion.  But  in  this  I  was  dis- 
appointed, for  he  disregarded  both  his  word  and  honor. 

"  In  the  fall  of  ]b26,  a  friend  called  upon  me,  and  wished  to  see 
that  stone,  about  which  so  much  had  been  said;  and  I  told  him,  if 
he  would  go  with  me  to  iSmith  s,  (a  distance  of  about  half  a  mile,)  lie 
might  see  it.  But,  to  my  surprise,  on  going  to  Smith's,  and  asking 
him  for  the  stone,  he  said,  '  You  cannot  have  it ; '  I  told  him  it  be- 
longed to  me,  repeated  to  him  the  promise  he  made  me,  at  the  time 
of  obtaining  the  stone :  upon  which  he  faced  me  with  a  malignant 
look,  and  said,  '  I  don't  care  who  in  the  Devil  it  belongs  to,  you 
shall  not  have  it.' 

"In  the  month  of  June,  1827,  Joseph  Smith,  Sen.,  related  to  me 
the  following  story  :  '  That  some  years  ago,  a  spirit  had  appeared  to 
Joseph  his  son,  in  a  vision,  and  informed  him  that  in  a  certain  place 
there  Avas  a  record  on  plates  of  gold,  and  that  he  was  the  person  that 
must  obtain  them,  and  this  he  must  do  in  the  following  manner: 
On  the  22d  of  September,  he  must  repair  to  the  place  where  was  de- 
posited this  manuscript,  dressed  in  black  clothes,  and  riding  a  black 
horse,  with  a  switch  tail,  and  demand  the  book  in  a  certain  name,  and 
after  obtaining  it  he  must  go  directly  away,  and  neither  lay  it  down 
nor  look  behind  liim.     They  accordingly  fitted  out  Joseph  with  a  suit 


68  HISTORY    or   THE    SAINTS. 

of  black  clothes  and  borrowed  a  black  horse.  He  repaired  to  the  place 
of  deposit  and  demanded  the  book,  which  was  in  a  stone  box,  un- 
sealed, and  so  near  the  top  of  the  ground  that  he  could  see  one  end 
of  it,  and  raising-  it  up,  took  out  the  book  of  gold  ;  but  fearing  some 
one  might  discover  wliere  lie  got  it,  he  laid  it  down  to  place  back  the 
top  stone,  as  he  found  it;  and  turning  round,  to  his  surprise  there 
was  no  book  in  sight.  He  again  opened  the  bo.x,  and  in  it  saw  the 
book,  and  attempted  to  take  it  out,  but  was  hindered.  He  saw  in 
the  bos  something  like  a  toad,  which  soon  assumed  the  appearance 
of  a  man,  and  struck  him  on  the  side  of  his  head.  Not  being  dis- 
coiuraged  at  trifles,  he  again  stooped  down  and  strove  to  take  the 
book,  when  the  spirit  struck  him  again,  and  knocked  him  three  or 
four  rods,  and  hurt  him  prodigiously.  After  recovering  from  his 
fright,  he  inquired  why  he  could  not  obtain  the  plates;  to  which  the 
spirit  made  reply,  because  you  have  not  obeyed  your  orders.  He 
then  inquired  when  he  coidd  have  them,  and  was  answered  thus : 
Come  one  year  irom  this  day,  and  bring  with  you  your  oldest 
brother,  and  you  shall  have  them.  This  spirit,  he  said,  was  the 
spirit  of  the  prophet  who  wrote  this  book,  and  who  was  sent  to 
Joseph  Smith,  to  make  known  these  things  to  him.  Before  the 
expiration  of  the  year,  his  oldest  brother  died ;  which  the  old  man 
said  was  an  accidental  providence ! 

"  Joseph  went  one  year  from  that  day,  to  demand  the  book,  and 
the  spirit  inquired  for  his  brother,  and  he  said  tliat  he  was  dead.  The 
spirit  then  commanded  him  to  come  again,  in  just  one  year,  and 
bring  a  man  with  him.  On  asking  who  might  be  the  man,  he  was 
answered  that  he  would  know  him  when  he  saw  him. 

"  Joseph  believed  that  one  Samuel  T.  Lawrence  was  the  man  al- 
luded to  by  the  spirit,  and  went  with  him  to  a  singular  looking  hill, 
in  Manchester,  and  showed  him  where  the  treasure  was.  Lawrence 
asked  him  if  he  had  ever  discovered  any  thing  with  the  plates  of 
gold  ;  he  said  no  ;  he  then  asked  him  to  look  in  his  stone,  to  see  if 
there  was  any  thing  with  them.  He  looked,  and  said  there  was 
nothing ;  he  told  him  to  look  again,  and  see  if  there  was  not  a  large 
pair  of  specs  with  the  plates ;  he  looked  and  soon  saw  a  pair  of 
spectacles,  the  same  with  which  Joseph  says  he  translated  the  Book 
of  Mormon.  Lawrence  told  him  it  would  not  be  prudent  to  let  these 
plates  be  seen  for  about  two  years,  as  it  would  make  a  great  disturb- 
ance in  the  neighborhood.  Not  long  after  this  Joseph  altered  his 
mind,  and  said  L.  was  not  the  right  man,  nor  had  he  told  him  the 
right  place.  About  this  time  he  went  to  Harmony  in  Pennsylvania, 
and  formed  an  acquaintance  with  a  young  lady  by  the  name  of  Em 
ma  Hale,  whom  he  wished  to  marry.  In  the  fall  of  1826  he  wanted 
to  go  to  Pennsylvania  to  be  married  ;  but  being  destitute  of  means, 
he  now  set  his  wits  to  work  how  he  should  raise  mone}-,  and  get 
recommendations,  to  procure  the  fair  one  of  his  choice.  He  went  to 
Lawrence  with  the  following  story,  as  related  to  me  by  Lawrence 
himself.  That  he  had  discovered  in  Pennsylvania,  on  the  bank  of 
the  Susquehannah  River,  a  very  rich  mine  of  silver,  and  if  he  would 
go  there  with  him,  he  might  have  a  share  in  the  profits ;  that  it  was 
near  liigh-water  mark,  and  that  tliey  could  load  it  into  boats  and 


JOE    SMITH HIS    CLAIMS    AND    CHARACTER.        69 

take  it  down  the  river  to  Philadelpliia,  to  market.  Lawrence  then 
asked  Joseph  if  he  was  not  deceiving  liim  ;  no,  said  he,  for  I  have 
been  there  and  seen  it  with  my  own  eyes,  and  if  you  do  not  find  it 
so  when  we  get  there,  I  will  bind  myself  to  be  your  servant  for  three 
years.  By  these  grave  and  fair  promises  Lawrence  was  induced  to 
believe  something  in  it,  and  agreed  to  go  with  him.  L.  soon  found 
that  Joseph  was  out  of  money,  and  had  to  bear  his  expenses  on  the 
way.  When  they  got  to  Pennsylvania,  Joseph  wanted  L.  to  recom- 
mend him  to  Miss  H.,  which  he  did,  although  he  was  asked  to  do 
it;  but  could  not  well  get  rid  of  it  as  he  was  in  his  company.  L. 
then  wished  to  see  the  silver  mine,  and  he  and  Joseph  went  to  the 
river,  and  made  search,  but  found  nothing.  Thus  Lawrence  had 
his  trouble  for  his  pains,  and  returned  home  lighter  than  he  went, 
while  Joseph  had  got  his  expenses  borne,  and  a  recommendation  to 
his  girl. 

"  Joseph's  next  move  was  to  get  married  ;  the  girl's  parents  being 
opposed  to  the  match :  as  they  happened  to  be  from  home,  he  took 
advantage  of  the  opportunity,  and  went  off  with  her  and  was  mar- 
ried. 

"  iXow,  being  still  destitute  of  money,  he  set  his  wits  at  work  how 
he  should  get  back  to  Manchester,  his  place  of  residence  ;  he  hit  up- 
on the  following  plan,  which  succeeded  very  well.  He  went  to  an 
honest  old  Dutchman,  by  the  name  of  Stowel,  and  told  him  that  he 
had  discovered  on  the  bank  of  Black  River,  in  the  village  of  Water- 
town,  Jefferson  County,  N.  Y.,  a  cave,  in  which  he  had  found  a  bar 
of  gold,  as  big  as  his  leg,  and  about  three  or  four  feet  long.  That  he 
could  not  get  it  out  alone,  on  account  of  its  being  fast  at  one  end ; 
and  if  he  would  move  him  to  Manchester,  N.  Y.,  they  would  go  to- 
gether, and  take  a  chisel  and  mallet,  and  get  it,  and  Stowel  should 
share  the  prize  with  him.     Stowel  moved  him. 

"  A  short  time  after  their  arrival  at  Manchester,  Stowel  reminded 
Joseph  of  his  promise  ;  but  he  calmly  replied,  that  he  would  not  go, 
because  his  wife  was  now  among  strangers,  and  would  be  very  lone- 
some if  he  went  away.  Mr.  Stowel  was  then  obliged  to  return  with- 
out any  gold,  and  with  less  money  than  he  came. 

"  In  the  fore  part  of  September,  (I  believe,)  1827,  the  Prophet  re- 
quested me  to  make  him  a  chest,  informing  me  that  he  desio-ned  to 
move  back  to  Pennsylvania,  and  expecting  soon  to  get  his  gold  book, 
he  wanted  a  chest  to  lock  it  up,  giving  me  to  understand  at  the  same 
time,  that  if  I  would  make  the  chest  he  would  give  me  a  share  in  the 
book.  I  told  him  my  business  was  such  that  I  could  not  make  it ; 
but  if  he  would  bring  the  book  to  me,  1  would  lock  it  up  for  him. 
He  said  that  would  not  do,  as  he  was  commanded  to  keep  it  two 
years,  without  letting  it  come  to  the  eye  of  any  one  but  himself 
This  commandment,  however,  he  did  not  keep ;  for  in  less  than  two 
years,  twelve  men  said  they  had  seen  it.  I  told  him  to  get  it  and 
convince  me  of  its  existence,  and  I  would  make  him  a  chest ;  but  he 
said,  that  would  not  do,  as  he  must  have  a  chest  to  lock  the  book  in, 
as  soon  as  he  took  it  out  of  the  ground.  I  saw  him  a  few  days  after, 
when  he  told  me  that  I  must  make  the  chest.  I  told  him  plainly 
that  I  could  not,  upon  which  he  told  me  that  I  could  have  no  share 
in  the  book. 


70  HISTORY    OF   THE    SAINTS. 

"  A  few  weeks  after  this  conversation  he  came  to  my  house,  and 
related  the  following  story  :  That  on  the  22d  of  September,  he  arose 
early  in  the  morning-,  and  took  a  one  horse  wagon,  of  some  one  that 
had  staid  over  night  at  their  house,  without  leave  or  license  ;  and, 
together  with  his  wife,  repaired  to  the  hill  which  contained  the  book. 
He  left  his  wife  in  the  wagon,  by  the  road,  and  went  alone  to  the 
hill,  a  distance  of  thirty  or  forty  rods  from  the  road;  he  said  he  then 
took  the  book  out  of  the  ground  and  hid  it  in  a  tree  top,  and  returned 
home.  He  then  went  to  tlie  town  of  Macedon  to  work.  After  about 
ten  days,  it  having^  been  suggested  that  some  one  had  got  his  book, 
his  wife  went  after  him;  he  hired  a  horse,  and  went  home  in  the  af- 
ternoon, staid  long  enough  to  drink  one  cup  of  tea,  and  tlien  went 
for  liis  book,  found  it  safe,  took  off  his  frock,  wrapt  it  round  it,  put 
it  under  his  arm  and  ran  all  the  way  home,  a  distance  of  about  two 
miles.  He  said  he  should  think  it  would  weigh  sixty  pounds,  and 
was  sure  it  would  weigh  forty.  On  his  return  home,  he  said  he  was 
attacked  by  two  men  in  the  woods,  and  knocked  them  both  down 
and  made  his  escape,  arrived  safe  and  secured  his  treasure.  He  then 
observed  that  if  it  had  not  been  for  that  stone,  (which  he  acknowl- 
edged belonged  to  me,)  he  would  not  have  obtained  the  book.  A 
few  days  afterwards,  he  told  one  of  my  neighbors  that  he  had  not 
got  any  such  book,  nor  never  had  such  an  one  ;  but  that  he  had  told 

the  story  to  deceive  the  d d  fool,  (meaning  me,)  to  get  him  to 

make  a  chest.  His  neighbors  having  become  disgusted  with  his 
foolish  stories,  he  determined  to  go  back  to  Pennsylvania,  to  avoid 
what  he  called  persecution.  His  wits  were  now  put  to  the  task  to 
contrive  how  he  should  get  money  to  bear  his  expenses.  He  met 
one  day  in  the  streets  of  Palmyra  a  rich  man,  whose  name  was  Mar- 
tin Harris,  and  addressed  him  thus  :  '  I  have  a  commandment  from 
God  to  ask  the  first  man  I  meet  in  the  street  to  give  me  fifty  dollars, 
to  assist  me  in  doing  the  work  of  the  Lord  by  translating  the  Golden 
Bible.'  Martin  being  naturally  a  credulous  man,  hands  Joseph  the 
money.  In  the  spring  of  1829  Harris  went  to  Pennsylvania,  and 
on  his  return  to  Palmyra,  reported  that  the  Prophet's  wife,  in  the 
month  of  June  following,  would  be  delivered  of  a  male  child  that 
would  be  able  when  two  years  old  to  translate  the  Gold  Bible. 
Then,  said  he,  you  will  see  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  walking  through  the 
streets  of  Palmyra  with  a  Gold  Bible  under  his  arm,  and  having  a 
gold  breastplate  on,  and  a  gold  sword  hanging  by  }iis  side.  This, 
however,  by  the  by,  proved  false. 

"  In  April,  1830,  I  again  asked  Hiram  for  the  stone  which  he  had 
borrowed  of  me ;  he  told  me  I  should  not  have  it,  for  Joseph  made 
use  of  it  in  translating  his  Bible.  I  reminded  him  of  his  promise, 
and  that  he  had  pledged  his  honor  to  return  it ;  but  he  gave  me  the 
lie,  saying  the  stone  was  not  mine  nor  never  was.  Harris  at  the 
same  time  flew  in  a  rage,  took  me  by  the  collar  and  said  1  was  a  liar, 
and  he  could  prove  it  by  twelve  witnesses.  After  I  had  extricated 
myself  from  him,  Hiram  in  a  rage  shook  his  fist  at  me,  and  abused 
me  in  a  most  scandalous  manner.  Thus  I  might  proceed  in  describ- 
ing the  character  of  these  High  Priests,  by  relating  one  transaction 
after  another,  which  would  all  tend  to  set  them  in  the  same  light  in 


JOE    SMITH HIS    CLAIMS    AND    CHARACTER.        71 

which  they  were  regarded  by  tlieir  neighbors,  viz. :  as  a  pest  to  so- 
ciety. I  have  regarded  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  from  the  time  I  first  be- 
came acquainted  v/ith  him  until  he  left  this  part  of  the  country,  as  a 
man  whose  word  could  not  be  depended  upon.  Hiram's  character 
was  but  very  little  better.  What  I  have  said  respecting  the  charac- 
ters of  these  men,  will  apply  to  the  whole  family.  What  I  have 
stated  relative  to  the  characters  of  these  individuals,  thus  far,  is 
wholly  true.  After  tliey  became  thorough  Mormons,  their  conduct 
v.-as  more  disgraceful  than  before.  They  did  not  hesitate  to  abuse 
any  man,  no  matter  how  fair  his  character,  provided  he  did  not  em- 
brace their  creed.  Their  tongues  were  continually  employed  in 
spreading  scandal  and  abuse.  Although  they  left  this  part  of  the 
country  without  paying  their  just  debts,  yet  their  creditors  were  glad 
to  have  them  do  so,  rather  than  to  have  them  stay,  disturbing  the 
neighborhood,  „  Willard  Chase. 


"  On  the  11th  December,  1833,  the  said  Willard  Chase  appeared 
before  rae,  and  made  oath  that  the  foregoing  statement  to  which  he 
has  subscribed  his  name,  is  true,  according  to  his  best  recollection 
and  belief.  Fred'k  Smith, 

'■'■Justice  of  the  Peace  of  Wayne  County." 


"  Tht  Testimony  of  Parley  Chase. 

"  Ma>"chestek,  December  2,  1833. 

"  1  was  acquainted  with  the  family  of  Joseph  Smith,  Sen.,  both 
before  and  since  they  became  Mormons,  and  feel  free  to  state  that 
not  one  of  the  male  members  of  the  Smith  family  was  entitled  to 
any  credit  whatsoever.  They  were  lazy,  intemperate,  and  worth- 
less men,  very  much  addicted  to  lying.  In  this  they  frequently 
boasted  of  their  skill.  Digging  for  money  was  their  principal  em- 
ployment. In  regard  to  their  Gold  Bible  speculation,  they  scarcely 
ever  told  two  stories  alike.  Tlie  Mormon  Bible  is  said  to  be  a  reve- 
lation from  God,  through  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  his  Prophet,  and  this 
same  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  to  my  knowledge,  bore  the  reputation  among 
his  neighbors  of  being  a  liar.  The  foregoing  statement  can  be  cor- 
roborated by  all  his  former  neighbors.  Parley  Chase." 


"  Palmyra,  December  13,  1833. 
"  I  certify  that  I  have  been  personally  acquainted  with  Peter  In- 
gersoll  for  a  number  of  years,  and  believe  him  to  be  a  man  of  strict 
integrity,  truth  and  veracity.  Dcrfey  Chase." 


"Palmvra,  December  4,  1833. 

"  I  am  acquainted  with  William  Stafford  and  Peter  Ingersoll,  and 
believe  them  to  be  men  of  truth  and  veracity.  J.  S.  Colt." 


72  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

"  PiLMYRA,  December  4,  1833. 
"  We,  the  undersigned,  are  personally  acquainted  with  William 
Stafford,  Willard  Ciiase  and  Peter  Ingersoll,  and  bulieve  them  to  be 
men  of  trutli  and  veracity  "George  Beckwitk, 

"  Nath'l  H.  Beckwith, 
"Thomas  Rogers,  2d, 
"Martin  W,  Wilcox." 


"  TJie  Testimony  of  David  Stafford. 

"  Manchester,  December  5,  1833. 
"I  have  been  acquainted  with  the  family  of  Joseph  Smith,  Sen., 
for  several  years,  and  I  know  him  to  be  a  drunkard  and  a  liar,  and 
to  be  much  in  the  habit  of  gambling.  He  and  his  boys  were  truly 
a  lazy  set  of  fellows,  and  jnore  particularly  Joseph,  who  very  aptly 
followed  his  father's  example,  and  in  some  respects  was  worse. 
When  intoxicated  he  was  very  quarrelsome.  Previous  to  his  going 
to  Pennsylvania  to  get  married,  we  worked  together  making  a  coal- 
pit. While  at  worli  at  one  time,  a  dispute  arose  between  us,  (he 
having  drinked  a  little  too  freely,)  and  some  hard  words  passed  be- 
tween us,  and  as  usual  with  him  at  such  times,  was  for  fighting- 
He  got  the  advantage  of  me  in  tlio  scuffle,  and  a  gentleman  by  tlie 
nam.e  of  Ford  interfered,  when  Joseph  turned  to  fighting  him.  We 
botii  entered  a  complaint  against  him  and  he  was  fined  for  tiie  breach 
of  the  peace.  It  is  well  known,  that  the  general  employment  of  the 
Smith  family  was  money-digging  and  fortune-telling.  They  kept 
around  them,  constantly,  a  gang  of  worthless  fellows  who  dug  for 
money  nights,  and  were  idle  in  the  daytime.  It  v.'as  a  mystery 
to  the"ir  neiglibors  how  they  got  their  living.  I  will  mention  some 
circumstances  and  tlie  pubhc  may  judge  for  themselves.  At  dif- 
ferent times  I  have  seen  them  come  from  the  woods  early  in  the 
morning,  bringing  meat  which  looked  like  mutton.  I  went  into  the 
woods  one  morning  very  early,  shooting  partridges,  and  found  Joseph 
Smith,  Sen.,  in  compa^ny  with  two  other  men,  with  hoes,  shovels, 
and  meat  that  looked  like  mutton.  On  seeing  me  they  run  like 
wild  men  to  get  out  of  sight.  Seeing  the  old  man  a  few  days  after- 
I  wards,  1  asked  him  why  he  run  so  the  other  day  in  the  woods  ;  '  Ah,' 
said  lie,  '  you  know  that  circumstances  alter  cases  ;  it  will  not  do  to 
be  seen  at  all  times.' 

"  I  can  also  state,  that  Oliver  Cowdery  proved  himself  to  be  a 
worthless  person,  and  not  to  be  trusted  or  believed  when  he  taught 
school  in  this  neighborhood.  After  his  going  into  the  ministry, 
while  officiating  in  performing  the  ordinance  of  baptism  in  a  brook, 
William  Smith,  (brother  of  Joseph  Smith,)  seeing  a  young  man 
writing  down  what  was  said,  on  a  piece  of  board,  was  quite  offended 
and  attempted  to  take  it  from  him,  kicked  at  him,  and  clinched  for 
a  scuflle.  Such  was  the  conduct  of  these  pretended  Disciples  of 
the  Lord.  David   Stafford. 

"On  the  12th  day  of  December,  1833,  the  said  David  Stafford 
appeared  before  me,  and  made  oath  that  the  foregoing  statement, 
by  him  subscribed,  is  tiue.  Fkid'k  Ismith, 

"  Justice  of  the  Peace  of  Wayne  County,  M'cio  York." 


FOE    SMITH HIS    CLAIMS    AND    CHARACTER.        73 

"  The  Testimony  of  Barton  Stafford. 

"  Manchester,  Ontario  County,  New  York,  JVovember  3,  )833 
"  Being  called  upon  to  give  a  statement  of  the  character  of  the 
family  of  Joseph  Smith,  Sen.,  as  far  as  1  know,  I  can  state  that  1 
became  acquainted  with  them  in  1820,  and  knew  them  until  1831, 
when  they  left  this  neighborhood.  Joseph  Smith,  Sen.,  was  a 
noted  drunkard  and  most  of  the  family  followed  his  example,  and 
Jloseph,  Jr.,  especially,  who  was  very  much  addicted  to  intem- 
perance. In  short,  not  one  of  the  family  had  the  least  claims  to 
respectability.  Even  since  he  professed  to  be  inspired  of  tlie  Lord 
to  translate  the  Book  of  Mormon,  he  one  day,  while  at  work  in  my 
father's  field,  got  quite  drunk  on  a  composition  of  cider,  molasses 
and  water.  Finding  his  legs  to  refuse  their  office,  he  leaned  upon 
the  fence  and  hung  for  some  time  ;  at  length  recovering  again,  he 
fell  to  scuffling  with  one  of  the  workmen,  wlio  tore  his  shirt  nearly 
off  from  him.  His  wife,  who  was  at  our  house  on  a  visit,  appeared 
very  much  grieved  at  his  conduct,  and  to  protect  his  back  from  the 
rays  of  the  sun,  and  conceal  his  nakedness,  threw  her  shawl  over 
his  shoulders,  and  in  that  plight  escorted  the  Prophet  home.  As  an 
evidence  of  his  piety  and  devotion,  when  intoxicated,  he  frequently 
made  his  religion  the  topic  of  conversation  !  ! 

"  Barton  Stafford. 

"State  of  New  York,  ) 
Wayne  County,  J 

"I  certify  that  on  the  9th  day  of  December,  1833,  personally 
appeared  before  me,  the  above-named  Barton  Stafford,  to  me  known, 
and  solemnly  affirmed  according  to  law,  to  the  truth  of  the  above 
statement  and  subscribed  the  same. 

"Thos.  P.  Baldwin, 
Jl  Judge  of  Wayne  County  Court.' 


"  I,  Henry  Harris,  do  state  that  I  became  acquainted  with  the 
family  of  Joseph  Smith,  Sen.,  about  the  year  1820,  in  the  town  of 
Manchester,  New  York.  They  were  a  family  that  labored  very 
little  —  the  chief  they  did,  was  to  dig  for  money.  Joseph  Smith, 
Jr.,  the  pretended  Prophet,  used  to  pretend  to  tell  fortunes  ;  he 
had  a  stone  which  he  used  to  put  in  his  hat,  by  means  of  which  he 
professed  to  tell  people's  fortunes. 

"  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  Martin  Harris,  and  others,  used  to  meet 
together  in  private,  a  while  before  the  gold  plates  were  found,  and 
were  familiarly  known  by  the  name  of  the  '  Gold  Bible  Company.' 
They  were  regarded  by  the  community  in  which  they  lived,  as  a 
lying  and  indolent  set  of  men,  and  no  confidence  could  be  placed 
in  them. 

"The  character  of  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  for  truth  and  veracity 
was  such,  that  I  would  not  believe  him  under  oath.  I  was  once  on 
a  jury  before  a  Justice's  Court,  and  the  jury  could  not,  and  did  not, 
believe  his  testimony  to  be  true.  After  he  pretended  to  have  found 
the  gold  plates,  I  had  a  conversation  with  him,  and  asked  him 
where  he  found  them  and  how  he  come  to  know  where  they  were. 
7 


74  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

He  said  he  had  a  revelation  from  God  that  told  him  they  were  hid 
in  a  certain  hill,  and  he  looked  in  his  stone  and  saw  them  in  the 
place  of  deposit;  that  an  angel  appeared,  and  tolfi  him  he  could  not 
get  the  plates  until  he  was  married,  and  that  when  he  saw  the 
woman  that  was  to  be  his  wife,  he  should  know  her,  and  she  would 
know  him.  He  then  went  to  Pennsylvania,  got  his  wife,  and  they 
both  went  together  and  got  the  gold  plates  —  he  said  it  was  revealed 
to  him,  that  no  one  must  see  the  plates  but  himself  and  wife. 

"  I  then  asked  him  what  letters  were  engraved  on  them,  he  said 
italic  letters  written  in  an  unknown  language,  and  that  he  had 
copied  some  of  the  words  and  sent  them  to  Dr.  Mitchell  and  Professor 
Anthon  of  New  York.  By  looking  on  the  plates  he  said  he  could 
not  understand  the  words,  but  it  was  made  known  to  him  that  he 
was  the  person  that  must  translate  them,  and  on  looking  through 
the  stone  was  enabled  to  translate. 

"  After  the  book  was  published,  I  frequently  baHtered  him  for  a 
copy!  He  asked  fourteen  shillings  a  piece  for  them ;  I  told  him  I 
would  not  give  so  much  ;  he  told  me  he  had  had  a  revelation  that 
they  must  be  sold  at  that  price. 

"  Some  time  afterwards  I  talked  with  Martin  Harris  about  buying 
one  of  the  books,  and  he  told  me  they  had  had  a  new  revelation, 
that  they  might  be  sold  at  ten  shillings  a  piece. 

"  Henry  Harris." 

"  State  of  Ohio,     ) 
Cuyahoga  County,   \ 

"Personally  appeared  before  me,  Henry  Harris,  and  made  oath  in 
due  form  of  law,  that  the  foregoing  statements  subscribed  by  him 
are  true.  "Jonathan  Lapham, 

'■'■Justice  of  the  Peace." 


"  Palmyra,  Wayne  County,  New  York,  llt/t  mo.  28tA,  1833. 
"  In  the  early  part  of  the  winter  in  1828,  I  made  a  visit  to  Martin 
Harris's,  and  was  joined  in  company  by  Jos.  Smith,  Sen.,  and  his 
wife.  Tiie  Gold  Bible  business,  so  called,  was  the  topic  of  con- 
versation, to  which  1  paid  particular  attention,  that  I  might  learn 
the  truth  of  the  whole  matter.  They  told  me  that  the  report  that 
Joseph,  Jr.,  had  found  golden  plates,  was  true,  and  that  he  was 
in  Harmony,  Pennsylvania,  translating  them  — that  such  plates  were 
in  existence,  and  that  Joseph,  Jr.,  was  to  obtain  them,  was  re- 
vealed to  him  by  the  spirit  of  one  of  the  Saints  that  was  on  this 
continent,  previous  to  its  being  discovered  by  Columbus.  Old  Mrs. 
Smith  observed  that  she  thought  he  must  be  a  Quaker,  as  he  was 
dressed  very  plain.  They  said  that  the  plates  he  tlien  had  in  pos- 
sesjiion  were  hvA  an  introduction  to  the  Gold  Bible — that  all  of 
them  upon  which  the  Bible  was  written,  were  so  heavy,  that  it 
would  take  four  stout  men  to  load  them  into  a  cart  —  that  Joseph 
had  also  discovered  by  looking  through  his  stone,  the  vessel  in 
which  the  gold  was  melted  from  which  the  plates  were  made,  and 
also  the  machine  with  which  they  were  rolled ;  he  also  discovered 
in  the  bottom  of  the  vessel  three  balls  of  gold,  each  as  large  as  his 


JOE    SMITH HIS    CLAIMS    AND    CHARACTER.  75 

fist.  Tlie  old  lady  said  also,  that  after  the  book  was  translated, 
the  plates  were  to  be  publicly  exhibited  —  admittance  twenty-five 
cents.  She  calculated  it  would  bring  in  annually  an  enormous 
sum  of  money  —  that  money  would  then  be  very  plenty,  and  the 
book  would  also  sell  for  a  great  price,  as  it  was  something  entirely 
new  —  that  they  had  been  commanded  to  obtain  all  the  money  they 
could  borrow  for  present  necessity,  and  to  repay  with  gold.  The 
remainder  was  to  be  kept  in  store  for  the  benefit  of  their  family  and 
children.  This  and  the  like  conversation  detained  me  until  about 
eleven  o'clock.  Early  the  next  morning,  the  mystery  of  the  spirit 
being  like  myself  (one  of  the  order  called  Friends)  was  revealed  by 
the  following  circumstance  :  The  old  lady  took  me  into  another 
room,  and  after  closing  the  door,  she  said,  '  Have  you  four  or  five 
dollars  in  money  that  you  can  lend  until  our  business  is  brought  to  a 
close  .'  the  spirit  has  said  you  shall  receive  fourfold.'  I  told  her 
that  when  I  gave,  I  did  it  not  expecting  to  receive  again  —  as  for 
money  I  had  none  to  lend.  I  then  asked  her  what  her  particular 
want  of  money  was;  to  which  she  replied,  'Joseph  wants  to  take 
the  stage  and  come  home  from  Pennsylvania  to  see  what  we  are  all 
about.'  To  which  I  replied,  he  might  look  in  his  stone  and  save  his 
time  and  money.  The  old  lady  seemed  confused,  and  left  the  room, 
and  thus  ended  the  visit. 

"  In  the  second  month  following,  Martin  Harris  and  his  wife  were 
at  my  house.  In  conversation  about  Mormonites,  she  observed,  that 
she  wished  her  husband  would  quit  them,  as  she  believed  it  was  all 
false  and  a  delusion.  To  which  I  heard  Mr.  Harris  reply :  '  IVhat 
if  it  is  a  lie;  if  you  icill  let  me  alone  I  icill  wake  money  out  of  it ! ' 
I  was  both  an  eye  and  an  ear  witness  of  what  his  l)een  stated  above, 
which  is  now  fresh  in  my  memory,  and  I  give  it  to  the  world  for  the 
good  of  mankind.  I  speak  the  truth  and  lie  not,  God  bearing  me 
witness.  Abigail  Harris." 


"  Palmyra,  JVovember  29,  1833. 
"  Being  called  upon  to  give  a  statement  to  t!ie  world  of  what  I 
know  respecting  the  Gold  Bible  speculation,  and  also  of  the  conduct 
of  Martin  Harris,  my  husband,  who  is  a  leading  character  among 
the  Mormons,  I  do  it  free  from  prejudice,  realizing  that  I  must  give 
an  account  at  the  bar  of  God  for  what  I  say.  Martin  Harris  was 
once  industrious,  attentive  to  his  domestic  concerns,  and  thought  to 
be  worth  about  ten  thousand  dollars.  He  is  naturally  quick  in  his 
temper,  and  in  his  mad-fits  frequently  abuses  all  who  may  dare  to 
oppose  him  in  his  wishes.  However  strange  it  may  seem,  I  have 
been  a  great  sufferer  by  his  unreasonable  conduct.  At  diflferent 
times  while  I  lived  with  him,  he  has  whipped,  kicked,  and  turned 
me  out  of  the  house.  About  a  year  previous  to  the  report  being 
raised  that  Smith  had  found  gold  plates,  he  became  very  intimate 
with  the  Smith  family,  and  said  he  believed  Joseph  could  see 
in  his  stone  any  thing  he  wished.  After  this  he  apparently  became 
very  sanguine  in  his  belief,  and  frequently  said  he  would  have  no 
one  in  his  house  that  did  not  believe  in  Mormonism ;  and  because 
I  would  not  give  credit  to  the  report  he  made  about  the  gold  plates, 


76  HISTORY   OF   THE    SAINTS. 

he  became  more  austere  towards  me.  In  one  of  his  fits  of  rage  he 
struck  me  with  the  butt-end  of  a  whip,  which  I  think  had  been  used 
for  driving  oxen,  and  was  about  the  size  of  my  thumb,  and  three  or 
four  feet  long.  He  beat  me  on  the  head  four  or  five  times,  and  the 
next  day  turned  me  out  of  doors  twice,  and  beat  me  in  a  shameful 
manner.  The  next  day  I  went  to  the  town  of  Marion,  and  while 
there  my  flesh  was  black  and  blue  in  many  places.  His  main  com 
plaint  against  me  was,  that  I  was  always  trying  to  hinder  his  mak- 
ing money. 

"  When  he  found  out  that  I  was  going  to  Mr.  Putnam's,  in 
Marion,  he  said  he  was  going  too,  that  they  had  sent  for  him  to  pay 
them  a  visit.  On  arriving  at  Mr.  Putnam's,  I  asked  them  if  they 
liad  sent  for  Mr.  Harris ;  they  replied,  they  knew  nothing  about  it ; 
he,  however,  came  in  the  evening.  Mrs.  Putnam  told  him  never  to 
strike  or  abuse  me  any  more ;  he  then  denied  ever  striking  me ;  she 
was  however  convinced  that  he  lied,  as  the  marks  of  his  beating 
me  were  plain  to  be  seen,  and  remained  more  than  two  weeks. 
Whether  the  Mormon  religion  be  true  or  false,  I  leave  the  world  to 
judge,  for  its  effects  upon  Martin  Harris  have  been  to  make  him 
more  cross,  turbulent  and  abusive  to  me.  His  whole  object  was  to 
make  money  by  it.  I  will  give  one  circumstance  in  proof  of  it. 
One  day,  while  at  Peter  Harris's  house,  I  told  him  he  had  better 
leave  the  company  of  the  Smiths,  as  their  religion  was  false;  to 
which  he  replied, '  If  you  would  let  me  alone,  I  could  make  money 
by  it.' 

"  It  is  in  vain  for  the  Mormons  to  deny  these  facts ;  for  they  are 
all  well  known  to  most  of  his  former  neighbors.  The  man  has  now 
become  rather  an  object  of  pity ;  he  has  spent  most  of  his  property, 
and  lost  the  confidence  of  his  former  friends.  If  he  had  labored  as 
hard  on  his  farm  as  he  has  to  make  Mormons,  he  might  now  be  one 
of  the  wealthiest  farmers  in  the  country.  He  now  spends  his  time 
in  travelling  through  the  country  spreading  the  delusion  of  Mor- 
monism,  and  has  no  regard  whatever  for  his  family. 

"  With  regard  to  Mr.  Harris's  being  intimate  with  Mrs.  Haggard, 
as  has  been  reported,  it  is  but  justice  to  myself  to  state  what  facts 
have  come  within  my  own  observation,  to  show  whether  I  had  any 
grounds  for  jealousy  or  not.  Mr.  Harris  was  very  intimate  with 
this  family,  for  some  time  previous  to  their  going  to  Ohio.  They 
lived  a  while  in  a  house  which  he  had  built  for  their  accommoda- 
tion, and  here  he  spent  the  most  of  his  leisure  hours  ;  and  made  her 
presents  of  articles  from  the  store  and  house.  He  carried  these 
presents  in  a  private  manner,  and  frequently  when  he  went  there, 
he  would  pretend  to  be  going  to  some  of  the  neighbors,  on  an 
errand,  or  to  be  going  into  the  fields.  After  getting  out  of  sight  of 
the  house,  he  would  steer  a  straight  course  for  Haggard's  house, 
especially  if  Haggard  was  from  home.  At  times  when  Haggard 
was  from  home,  he  would  go  there  in  the  manner  above  described, 
and  stay  till  twelve  or  one  o'clock  at  night,  and  sometimes  until 
daylight. 

"  If  his  intentions  were  evil,  the  Lord  will  judge  him  accord- 
ingly, but  if  good,  he  did  not  mean  to  let  his  leu  hand  know  what 


JOE    SMITH HIS    CLAIMS    AND    CHARACTER.        77 

his  right  hand  did.     The  above  statement  of  facts,  I  affirm  to  be 
true.  Lucy  Harihs." 


"  Manchester,  Ontario  County,  December  I,  1833. 

"  I,  Roswell  Nichols,  first  became  acquainted  with  the  family  of 
Joseph  Smith,  Sen.,  nearly  five  years  ago,  and  I  lived  a  neighbor  to 
the  said  family  about  two  years.  My  acquaintance  with  the  family  lias 
enabled  me  to  know  something  of  its  character  for  good  citizenship, 
probity  and  veracity  —  For  breach  of  contracts,  for  the  non-payment 
of  debts  and  borrowed  money,  and  for  duplicity  with  their  neighbors, 
the  family  was  notorious.  Once,  since  the  Gold  Bible  speculation 
commenced,  the  old  man  was  sued ;  and  while  the  sheriflf  was  at  his 
house,  he  lied  to  him  and  was  detected  in  the  falsehood.  Before  he 
left  the  house,  he  confessed  that  it  was  sometimes  necessary  for  him 
to  tell  an  honest  lie,  in  order  to  live.  At  another  time,  he  told  me 
that  he  had  received  an  express  command  for  me  to  repent  and  be- 
lieve as  he  did,  or  I  must  be  damned.  I  refused  to  comply,  and  at 
the  same  time  told  him  of  the  various  impositions  of  his  family.  He 
then  stated  their  digging  was  not  for  money,  but  it  was  for  the 
obtainincr  of  a  Gold  Bible.  Thus  contradicting  what  he  had  told 
me  before  :  for  he  had  often  said,  that  the  hills  in  our  neighborhood 
were  nearly  all  erected  by  human  hands  —  that  they  were  all  full 
of  gold  and  silver.  And  one  time,  when  we  were  talking  on  the 
subject,  he  pointed  to  a  small  hill  on  my  farm,  and  said,  '  In  that 
hill  there  is  a  stone  which  is  full  of  gold  and  silver.  I  know  it  to 
be  so,  for  I  have  been  to  the  hole,  and  God  said  unto  me.  Go  not  in 
Tioic,  hit  at  a  future  day  you  shall  go  in  and  find  the  hook  open,  and 
then  you  shall  leave  the  treasures.'  He  said  that  gold  and  silver  was 
once  as  plenty  as  the  stones  in  the  field  are  now  —  that  the  ancients, 
half  of  them  melted  the  ore  and  made  the  gold  and  silver,  while  the 
other  half  buried  it  deeper  in  the  earth,  wiiich  accounted  for  these 
hills.  Upon  my  inquiring  who  furnished  the  food  for  the  whole,  he 
flew  into  a  passion,  and  called  me  a  sinner,  and  said  he,  '  You  must 
be  eternally  damned." 

"  I  mention  these  facts,  not  because  of  their  intrinsic  importance, 
but  simply  to  show  the  weak-mindedness  and  low  character  of  the 
man.  Roswell  Nichols." 


"  Manchester,  Ontario  County,  JVovember  15,  1833. 
"  I,  Joshua  Stafford,  became  acquainted  with  the  family  of  Joseph 
Smith,  Sen.,  about  the  year  1819  or  "iO.  They  then  were  laboring 
people,  in  low  circumstances.  A  short  time  after  this,  they  com- 
menced digging  for  hidden  treasures,  and  soon  after  they  became 
indolent,  and  told  marvellous  stories  about  ghosts,  hobgoblins,  cav- 
erns, and  various  other  mysterious  matters.  Joseph  once  showed 
me  a  piece  of  wood  which  he  said  he  took  from  a  box  of  money,  and 
the  reason  he  gave  for  not  obtaining  the  box,  was,  that  it  moved. 
At  another  time,  he,  (Joseph,  Jr.,)  at  a  husking,  called  on  me  to 
become  security  for  a  horse,  and  said  he  would  reward  me  hand- 
Bomely,  for  he  had  found  a  box  of  watches,  and  they  were  as  larga 


78  HISTORY  OT   THE  SAINTS. 

as  hie  fist,  find  he  put  one  of  them  to  his  ear,  and  he  could  hear  it 
'  tick  forty  rods.'  Since  he  could  not  dispose  of  them  profitably  at 
Canandaigua  or  Palmyra,  he  wished  to  go  east  with  them.  He 
said  if  he  did  not  return  with  the  horse,  I  might  take  his  life.  I 
replied,  tliat  he  knew  I  would  not  do  that.  '  Well,'  said  he, '  I  did  not 
suppose  you  would,  yet  I  would  be  willing  that  you  should.'  He 
was  nearly  intoxicated  at  the  time  of  the  above  conversation. 

Joshua  Stafford. " 


"  Manchester,  Ontario  County,  JVovember  8,  1833. 
"  I,  Joseph  Capron,  became  acquainted  with  Joseph  Smith,  Sen., 
in  the  year  of  our  Lord,  1827.  They  have,  since  then,  been  really 
a  peculiar  people  —  fond  of  the  foolish  and  the  marvellous  —  at  one 
time  addicted  to  vice  and  the  grossest  immoralities  —  at  another 
time  making  the  highest  pretensions  to  piety  and  holy  intercourse 
with  Almiglity  God.  The  family  of  Smiths  held  Joseph,  Jr.,  in  high 
estiniation  on  account  of  some  supernatural  power,  which  he  was 
supposed  to  possess.  This  power  he  pretended  to  have  received 
through  the  medium  of  a  stone  of  peculiar  quality.  The  stone  was 
placed  in  a  hat,  in  such  a  manner  as  to  exclude  all  light,  except  that 
which  emanated-  from  the  stone  itself.  This  light  of  the  stone,  he 
pretended,  enabled  him  to  see  any  thing  he  wished.  Accordingly 
he  discovered  ghosts,  infernal  spirits,  mountains  of  gold  and  silver, 
and  many  other  invaluable  treasures  deposited  in  the  earth.  He 
would  often  tell  his  neighbors  of  his  wonderful  discoveries,  and  urge 
them  to  embark  in  the  money-digging  business.  Luxury  and  wealth 
were  to  be  given  to  all  who  would  adhere  to  his  counsel.  A  gang 
was-  soon  assembled.  Some  of  them  were  influenced  by  curiosity, 
others  were  sanguine  in  their  expectations  of  immediate  gain.  I 
will  mention  one  circumstance,  by  which  the  uninitiated  may  know 
how  the  company  dug  for  treasures.  The  sapient  Joseph  discov- 
ered, north-west  of  my  house,  a  chest  of  gold  watches ;  but,  as  they 
were  in  the  possession  of  the  evil  spirit,  it  required  skill  and  strata- 
gem to  obtain  them.  Accordingly,  orders  were  given  to  stick  a 
parcel  of  large  stakes  in  the  ground,  several  rods  around,  in  a  cir- 
cular form.  This  was  to  be  done  directly  over  the  spot  where  the 
treasures  were  deposited.  A  messenger  was  then  sent  to  Palmyra 
to  procure  a  polished  sword  :  after  which,  Samuel  F.  Lawrence,  with 
a  drawn  sword  in  his  hand,  marched  around  to  guard  any  assault 
which  his  Satanic  majesty  might  be  disposed  to  make.  Meantime, 
the  rest  of  the  company  were  busily  employed  in  digg'ing  for  the 
watches.  They  worked  as  usual  till  quite  exhausted.  But,  in  spite 
of  their  brave  defender,  Lawrence,  and  their  bulwark  of  stakes,  the 
devil  came  off  victorious,  and  carried  away  the  watches.  I  might 
mention  numerous  schemes  which  this  young  visionary  and  im- 
postor had  recourse  to  for  the  purpose  of  obtaining  a  livelihood. 
He,  and  indeed  the  whole  of  the  family  of  Smiths,  were  notorious 
for  indolence,  foolery  and  falsehood.  Their  great  object  appeared 
to  be,  to  live  without  work.  While  they  were  digging  for  money, 
they  were  daily  harassed  by  the  demands  of  creditors,  which  they 
never  were  able  to  pay.    At  length,  Joseph  pretended  to  find  the 


JOE    SMITH HIS    CLAIMS    AND    CHARACTER.        79 

gold  plates.  This  scheme,  he  believed,  would  relieve  the  family 
from  all  pecuniary  embarrassment.  His  father  told  me,  that  when 
the  book  was  published,  they  would  be  enabled,  from  the  profits  of 
the  work,  to  carry  into  successful  operation  the  money-digging  busi- 
ness. He  gave  me  no  intimation,  at  that  time,  that  the  book  was  to 
be  of  a  religious  character,  or  that  it  had  any  thing  to  do  with  reve- 
lation. He  declared  it  to  be  a  speculation,  and  said  he, '  When  it  is 
completed,  my  family  will  be  placed  on  a  level  above  the  generality 
of  mankind  ! !  '  Joseph  Capron." 


"  Palmyra,  JVovmber  28,  1833. 
"  Having  been  called  on  to  state  a  few  facts  which  are  material  to 
the  characters  of  some  of  the  leaders  of  the  Mormon  sect,  I  will  do 
80  in  a  concise  and  plain  manner.  I  have  been  acquainted  with 
Martin  Harris,  about  thirty  years.  As  a  farmer,  he  was  industrious 
and  enterprising,  so  much  so,  that  he  had  (previous  to  his  going 
into  the  Gold  Bible  speculation)  accumulated,  in  real  estate,  some 
eight  or  ten  thousand  dollars.  Although  he  possessed  wealth,  his 
moral  and  religious  character  was  such,  as  not  to  entitle  him  to 
respect  among  his  neighbors.  He  was  fretful,  peevish  and  quarrel- 
some, not  only  in  the  neighborhood,  but  in  his  family.  He  was 
known  to  frequently  abuse  his  wife,  by  whipping  her,  kicking  her 
out  of  bed,  and  turning  her  out  of  doors,  &:c.  Yet  he  was  a  public 
professor  of  some  religion.  He  was  first  an  orthodox  Quaker,  then 
a  Universalist,  next  a  Restorationer,  then  a  Baptist,  next  a  Pres- 
byterian, and  then  a  Mormon.  By  his  willingness  to  become  all 
things  unto  all  men,  he  has  attained  a  high  standing  among  his 
Mormon  brethren.  The  Smith  family  never  made  any  pretensions 
to  respectability.  G.  W.  Stodard. 

"  I  hereby  concur  in  the  above  statement.     Richard  H.  Ford." 


"  Palmyra,  December  4,  1833. 

"  We,  the  undersigned,  have  been  acquainted  with  the  Smith  fami- 
ly, for  a  number  of  years,  while  they  resided  near  this  place,  and 
we  have  no  hesitation  in  saying,  that  we  consider  them  destitute  of 
that  moral  character,  which  ought  to  entitle  them  to  the  confidence 
of  any  community.  They  were  particularly  famous  for  visionary 
projects,  spent  much  of  their  time  in  digging  for  money  which  they 
pretended  was  hid  in  the  earth  ;  and  to  this  day,  large  excavations 
may  be  seen  in  the  earth,  not  far  from  their  residence,  where  they 
used  to  spend  their  time  in  digging  for  hidden  treasures.  Joseph 
Smith,  Senior,  and  his  son  Joseph,  were  in  particular  considered 
entirely  destitute  of  moral  character,  and  addicted  to  vicious  habits. 

"  Martin  Harris  was  a  man  who  had  acquired  a  handsome  proper- 
ty, and  in  matters  of  business  his  word  was  considered  good ;  but  on 
moral  and  religious  subjects,  he  was  perfectly  visionary,  —  some- 
times advocating  one  sentiment,  and  sometimes  another.  And  in 
reference  to  all  with  whom  we  were  acquainted,  that  have  embraced 
Mormonism  from  this  neighborhood,  we  are  compelled  to  say,  were 
very  visionary,  and  most  of  them  destitute  of  moral  character,  and 


80 


HISTORY   OF    THE    SAINTS. 


without  influence  in  this  community ;  and  this  may  account  why 
they  were  permitted  to  go  on  witli  their  impositions  undisturbed. 
It  was  not  supposed  that  any  of  them  were  possessed  of  sufficient 
character  or  influence  to  make  any  one  believe  their  book  or  their 
sentiments,  and  we  know  not  of  a  single  individual  in  this  vicinity 
that  puts  tlie  least  confidence  in  their  pretended  revelations. 

"  Geo.  N.Williams,        Wells  Anderson, 


"  Clark  Robinson, 
"  Lemuel  Durfee, 

"  E.    S.  TOWNSEND, 

"  Henry  P.  Alger, 
"  C.  E.  Thayer, 
"  G.  W.  Anderson, 
"  H.  P.  Thayer, 
"  L.  Williams, 
"  Geo.  W.  Crosby, 
"  Levi  Thayer, 
"  R.  S.  Williams, 
"  P.  Sexton, 

"  M.  BCTTERFIELD, 

"  S.  P.  Seymour, 
"  D.  S.  Jackways, 
"  John  Hurlbdt, 
"H.  Linnell, 
"  Jas.  Jenner, 
"  S.  Ackley, 
"  Josiah  Rice, 
"Jesse  Townsend, 
"Rich'd.  D.  Clark, 
"  Th.  p.  Baldwin, 
"  John  Sothington, 
"  Durfey  Chase, 


N.  H.  Beckwith, 
Philo  Dcrfee, 
Giles  S.  Ely, 
R.  W.  Smith, 
Pelatiah  West, 
Henry  Jessup, 
Linus  North, 
Thos.  Rogers,  2d. 
Wm.  Parke, 
Josiah  Francis, 
Amos  Hollister, 
G.  A.  Hathaway, 
David  G.  Ely, 
H.  K.  Jerome, 
G.  Beckwith, 
Lewis  Foster, 
Hiram  Payne, 
P.  Grandin, 
L.  Hurd, 
Joel  Thayer, 
E.  D.  Robinson, 
Asahel  Millard, 
A.  Ensworth, 
Israel  F.  Chilson.' 


"  Manchester,  J^'ovemher  '3,  1833. 
"  We,  the  undersigned,  being  personally  acquainted  with  the  fam- 
ily of  Joseph  Smith,  Sen.,  with  whom  the  celebrated  Gold  Bible,  so 
called,  originated,  state  :  that  they  were  not  only  a  lazy,  indolent 
set  of  men,  but  also  intemperate  ;  and  their  word  was  not  to  be  de- 
pended upon ;  and  that  we  are  truly  glad  to  dispense  with  their 
society.  "  Pardon  Butts,  A.  H.  Wentworth, 

"  Warden  A.  Reed,       Moses  C.  Smith, 

"  Hiram  Smith, 

"  Alfred  Stafford, 

"  James  Gee, 

"  Abel  Chase, 


Joseph  Fish, 
Horace  N.  Barnes, 
Silvester  Worden." 


«'  Harmont,  Pa.,  March  20,  1834. 
"  I  first  became  acquainted  with  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  in  November, 
1825.    He  was  at  that  time  ia  the  employ  of  a  set  of  men  who  weio 


JOE    SMITH HIS    CLAIMS    AND    CHARACTER.        81 

called  '  money-diggers ;'  and  his  occupation  was  that  of  seeing,  or 
pretending  to  see  by  means  of  a  stone  placed  in  his  hat,  and  his  hat 
closed  over  his  face.  In  this  way  he  pretended  to  discover  minerals 
and  hidden  treasure.  His  appearance  at  this  time,  was  that  of  a 
careless  young  man  —  not  very  well  educated,  and  very  saucy  and 
insolent  to  his  father.  Smith,  and  his  father,  with  several  other 
'money-diggers,'  boarded  at  my  house  while  they  were  employed  in 
digging  for  a  mine  that  they  supposed  had  been  opened  and  worked 
by  the  Spaniards,  many  years  since.  Young  Smith  gave  the  '  money- 
diggers  '  great  encouragement,  at  first,  but  when  they  had  arrived  m 
digging,  to  near  the  place  where  he  had  stated  an  immense  treasure 
would  be  found  —  he  said  the  enchantment  was  so  powerful  that  he 
could  not  see.  They  then  became  discouraged,  and  soon  after  dis- 
persed. This  took  place  about  the  17th  of  November,  1825 ;  and 
one  of  the  company  gave  me  his  note  for  $12  68  for  his  board,  which 
is  still  unpaid. 

"  After  these  occurrences,  young  Smith  made  several  visits  at  my 
house,  and  at  length  asked  my  consent  to  his  marrying  my  daughter 
Emma.  This  I  refused,  and  gave  my  reasons  for  so  doing ;  some  of 
which  were,  that  he  was  a  stranger,  and  followed  a  business  that  I 
could  not  approve ;  he  then  left  the  place.  Not  long  after  this,  he 
returned,  and  while  1  was  absent  from  home,  carried  off  my  daugh- 
ter, into  the  state  of  New  York,  where  they  were  married  without 
my  approbation  or  conjgnt.  After  they  had  arrived  at  Palmyra, 
N.  Y.,  Emma  wrote  to  me  inquiring  whether  she  could  take  her 
property,  consisting  of  clothing,  furniture,  cows,  &c.  I  replied  that 
her  property  was  safe,  and  at  her  disposal.  In  a  short  time  they 
returned,  bringing  with  them  a  Peter  Ingersoll,  and  subsequently 
came  to  the  conclusion  that  they  would  move  out,  and  reside  upon  a 
place  near  my  residence. 

"  Smith  stated  to  me,  that  he  had  given  up  what  he  called  '  glass- 
looking,'  and  that  he  expected  to  work  hard  for  a  livino-,  and  was 
willing  to  do  so.  He  also  made  arrangements  with  my  son  Alva 
Hale,  to  go  to  Palmyra,  and  move  his  (Smith's)  furniture,  «fec.,  to 
this  place.  He  then  returned  to  Palmyra,  and  soon  after,  Alva, 
agreeable  to  the  arrangement,  went  up  and  returned  with  Smith 
and  his  family.  Soon  afler  this,  I  was  informed  they  had  brought  a 
wonderful  Book  of  Plates  down  with  them.  I  was  shown  a  box  in 
which  it  is  said  they  were  contained,  which  had,  to  all  appearances, 
been  used  as  a  glass  box  of  the  common  window  glass.  I  was 
allowed  to  feel  the  weight  of  the  box,  and  they  gave  me  to  under- 
stand, that  the  Book  of  Plates  was  then  in  the  box  —  into  which, 
however,  I  was  not  allowed  to  look. 

"  I  inquired  of  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  who  was  to  be  the  first  who 
would  be  allowed  to  see  the  Book  of  Plates  ?  He  said  it  was  a 
young  child.  After  this,  I  became  dissatisfied,  and  informed  him 
that  if  there  was  any  thing  in  my  house  of  that  description,  which  I 
could  not  be  allowed  to  see,  he  must  take  it  away ;  if  he  did  not,  I 
was  determined  to  see  it.  After  that,  the  plates  were  said  to  be  hid 
in  the  woods. 

"  About  this  time,  Martin  Harris  made  his  appearance  upon  the 


82  HISTORY   OF   THE   SAINTS. 

stage  ;  and  Smith  began  to  interpret  the  characters  or  hieroglyphics 
which  he  said  were  engraven  upon  the  plates,  while  Hams  wrote 
down  the  interpretation.  It  was  said,  that  Harris  wrote  down  one 
hundred  and  sixteen  pages,  and  lost  them.  Soon  after  this  hap- 
pened, Martin  Harris  informed  me  that  lie  must  have  a  greater 
witness,  and  said  that  he  had  talked  with  Joseph  about  it  —  Joseph 
informed  him  that  he  could  not,  or  durst  not  show  him  the  plates, 
but  that  he  (Joseph)  would  go  into  the  woods  where  the  Book  of 
Plates  was,  and  that  after  he  came  back,  Harris  should  follow  his 
track  in  the  snow,  and  find  the  Book,  and  examine  it  for  himself. 
Harris  informed  me  afterwards,  that  he  followed  Smith's  directions, 
and  could  not  find  the  plates,  and  was  still  dissatisfied. 

"  The  next  day  after  this  happened,  I  went  to  the  house  where 
Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  lived,  and  where  he  and  Harris  were  engaged  in 
their  translation  of  the  book.  Each  of  them  had  a  written  piece  of 
paper  which  they  were  comparing,  and  some  of  the  words  were  '■viij 
servant  sccketh  a  greater  witness,  but  no  greater  witness  can  he  given 
him.'  There  was  also  something  said  about  '  three  that  were  tu  see 
the  thing  '  —  meaning,  I  supposed,  the  Book  of  Plates,  and  that '  if  the 
three  did  not  go  exactly  according  to  the  orders,  the  thing  would  be 
taken  from  them.'  I  inquired  whose  words  they  were,  and  was 
informed  by  Joseph  or  Emma,  (I  rather  think  it  was  the  former,)  that 
they  were  the  words  of  Jesus  Christ.  I  told  them,  that  I  considered 
the  whole  of  it  a  delusion,  and  advised  them  to  abandon  it.  The 
manner  in  which  he  pretended  to  read  and  interpret,  was  the  same 
as  when  he  looked  for  the  money-diggers,  with  the  stone  in  his  hat, 
and  his  hat  over  his  face,  while  the  Book  of  Plates  was  at  the  same 
time  hid  in  tlie  woods  ! 

"  After  this,  Martin  Harris  went  away,  and  Oliver  Cowdery  came 
and  wrote  for  Smith,  while  he  interpreted  as  above  described.  This 
is  the  same  Oliver  Cowdery,  whose  name  may  be  found  in  the  Book 
of  Mormon.  Cowdery  continued  a  scribe  for  Smith  until  the  Book 
of  Mormon  was  completed,  as  I  supposed  and  understood. 

"  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  resided  near  me  for  some  time  after  this,  and 
I  had  a  good  opportunity  of  becoming  acquainted  witli  him,  and 
somewhat  acquainted  with  his  associates,  and  I  conscientiously 
believe  from  the  facts  I  have  detailed,  and  from  many  other  cir- 
cumstances, which  I  do  not  deem  it  necessary  to  relate,  that  the 
whole  '  Book  of  Mormon '  (so  called)  is  a  silly  fabrication  of  false- 
hood and  wickedness,  got  up  for  speculation,  and  with  a  design  to 
dupe  the  credulous  and  unwary  —  and  in  order  that  its  fabricators 
may  live  upon  the  spoils  of  those  who  swallow  the  deception. 

"  Isaac  Hale. 

"  Affirmed  to  and  subscribed  before  me,  March  20,  1834. 

"  Charles  Dimon, 
_  "  J.  Peace." 

"  State  of  Pennsylvania,  Susquehannah  County,  ss. 

"  We,  the  subscribers,  associate  Judges  of  the  Court  of  Conamon 
Pleas,  in  and  for  said  county,  do  certify  that  we  have  been  many 


JOE    SMITH HIS    CLAIMS    AND    CHARACTER.         83 

years  personally  acquainted  with  Isaac  Hale,  of  Harmony  township 
m  this  county,  who  has  attested  the  foregoing  statement ;  and  that 
he  is  a  man  of  excellent  moral  character,  and  of  undoubted  veracity. 
Witness  our  hands.  "  William  Thompson. 

"  Davis  Dimock. 
"March  21,  1834." 


"  Elder  Lewis  also  certifies  and  affirms  in  relation  to  Smith  as 
follows  : — 

"  '  I  have  been  acquainted  with  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  for  some  time  : 
being  a  relation  of  his  wife,  and  residing  near  him,  I  have  had  fre- 
quent opportunities  of  conversation  with  him,  and  of  knowing  his 
opinions  and  pursuits.  From  my  standing  in  the  Methodist  Episco- 
pal church,  I  suppo.se  he  was  careful  how  he  conducted  ot  ex- 
pressed himself  before  nie.  At  one  time,  however,  he  came  to  my 
house,  and  asked  my  advice,  whetlier  he  should  proceed  to  translate 
the  Book  of  Plates  (referred  to  by  Mr.  Hale)  or  not.  He  said  that 
God  had  commanded  him  to  translate  it,  but  he  was  afraid  of  the 
people  •  he  remarked,  that  he  was  to  exhibit  the  plates  to  the  world, 
at  a  certain  time,  whicii  was  tiien  about  eighteen  months  distant. 
I  told  him  I  was  not  qualified  to  give  advice  in  such  cases.  Smith 
frequently  said  to  me  that  I  should  see  the  plates  at  tlie  time 
appointed. 

"  '  After  the  time  stipulated  had  passed  away.  Smith  being  at  my 
house  was  asked  why  he  did  not  fulfil  his  promise,  show  the  Golden 
Plates  and  prove  himself  an  honest  man  .''  Pie  replied  that  he  him- 
self was  deceived,  but  that  I  should  see  them  if  1  were  where  they 
were.  I  reminded  him  then,  that  1  stated  at  the  time  he  made  the 
promise,  I  was  fearful  "  the  enchantment  would  be  so  powerful  "  as 
to  remove  the  plates,  when  the  time  came  in  which  they  were  to  be 
revealed. 

"  '  These  circumstances,  and  many  others  of  a  similar  tenor,  im- 
bolden  me  to  say  that  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  is  not  a  man  of  truth  and 
veracity  ;  and  that  his  general  character  in  this  part  of  the  country, 
is  that  of  an  impostor,  hypocrite  and  liar. 

'  Nathaniel  C.  Lewis.' 


"  Affirmed  and  subscribed,  before  me,  March  20,  1834. 

"  Charles  Dimon, 
"J.  Peace. 


"  We  subjoin  the  substance  of  several  affidavits,  all  taken  and 
made  before  Charles  Dimon,  Esq.  by  credible  individuals,  who  have 
resided  near  to,  and  been  well  acquainted  with  Joseph  Smith,  Jr. — 
illustrative  of  his  character  and  conduct. 

"  Joshua  McKune  states,  that  he  '  was  acquainted  with  Joseph 
Smith,  Jr.,  and  Martin  Harris,  during  their  residence  in  Harmony, 


84  HISTORY   OF    THE    SAINTS. 

Pa.,  and  knew  them  to  be  artful  seducers;'  —  that  they  informed 
liim  that '  Smitli  had  found  a  sword,  breastplate,  and  a  pair  of  spec- 
tacles, at  the  time  he  found  the  gold  plates  "  —  that  these  were  to  be 
'  shown  to  all  the  world  as  evidence  of  the  truth  of  what  was  con- 
tained in  those  plates,'  and  that  '  he  (McKune)  and  others  should 
see  them  at  a  specified  time.'  He  also  states,  that  '  tlie  time  for  the 
exhibition  of  the  plates,  &.C.,  has  gone  by,  and  he  has  not  seen  them.' 
'  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  told  him  that  his  (Smith's)  first-born  child  was  to 
translate  the  characters,  and  hieroglyphics  upon  the  plates,  into  our 
language  at  the  age  of  three  years ;  but  this  child  was  not  permitted 
to  live,  to  verify  the  prediction.'  He  also  states  that,  'he  has  been 
intimately  acquainted  with  Isaac  Hale  twenty-four  years,  and  has 
always  found  him  to  be  a  man  of  truth,  and  good  morals.' 

"  Hezekiah  McKune  states  that,  '  in  conversation  with  Joseph 
Smith,  Jr.,  he  (Smith)  said  he  was  nearly  equal  to  Jesus  Christ ; 
that  he  was  a  prophet  sent  by  God  to  bring  in  the  Jews,  and  that  he 
was  the  greatest  prophet  that  had  ever  arisen.' 

"  Alva  Hale,  son  of  Isaac  Hale,  states,  that  Joseph  Smith,  Jr., 
told  him,  that  '  his  (Smith's  gift  in  seeing  with  a  stone  and  hat,  was 
a  gift  from  God,' — but  also  states,  '  that  Smith  told  him  at  another 

time  that  this  ^^ peeping"  was  all  d d  nonsense.     He  (Smith)  was 

deceived  liimself,  but  did  not  intend  to  deceive  others ;  —  that  he  in- 
tended to  quit  the  business,  (of  peeping,)  and  labor  for  his  livelihood.' 
That  afterwards,  '  Smith  told  him,  he  should  see  the  plates  from 
which  he  translated  the  Book  of  Mormon,'  and  accordingly  at  the 
time  specified  by  Smith,  he  (Hale)  '  called  to  see  the  plates,  but 
Smith  did  not  show  them,  but  appeared  angry.'  He  further  states, 
tliat  he  knows  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.  to  be  an  impostor,  and  a  liar,  and 
knows  Martin  Harris  to  be  a  liar  likewise. 

"  Levi  Lewis  stales  that,  he  has  '  been  acquainted  with  Joseph 
Smith,  Jr.,  and  Martin  Harris,  and  that  he  has  heard  them  both  say, 
adultery  was  no  crime.  Harris  said  he  did  not  blame  Smith,  for  his 
(Smith's)  attempt  to  seduce  Eliza  Winters,'  &c. ;  —  Mr.  Lewis  says 
that,  he  '  knows  Smith  to  be  a  liar ;  —  that  lie  saw  him  (Smith) 
intoxicated  at  three  different  times  while  he  was  composing  the 
Book  of  Mormon,  and  also  that  he  has  heard  Smith,  when  driving 
oxen,  use  language  of  tlie  greatest  profanity.  Mr.  Lewis  also  tes- 
tifies that  he  heard  Smith  say,  he  (Smith)  was  as  good  as  Jesus 
Christ ;  —  that  it  was  as  bad  to  injure  him  as  it  was  to  injure  Jesus 
Christ.'  '  With  regard  to  the  plates,  Smith  said  God  had  deceived 
him  —  which  was  the  reason  he  (Smith)  did  not  show  them.' 

"  Sophia  Lewis  certifies  that,  she  '  heard  a  conversation  between 
Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  and  the  Rev.  James  B.  Roach,  in  which  Smith 
called  Mr.  R.  a  d d  fool.  Smith  also  said,  in  the  same  conver- 
sation, that,  he  (Smith)  was  as  good  as  Jesus  Christ; '  and  that  she 
'  has  frequently  heard  Smith  use  profane  language.'  She  states  that 
she  heard  Smith  say,  '  the  Book  of  Plates  could  not  be  opened  under 
penalty  of  death  by  any  other  person  but  his  (Smith's)  first-born, 
which  was  to  be  a  male.'  She  says  she  '  was  present  at  the  birth  of 
this  child,  and  that  it  was  still-born,  and  very  much  deformed.'  " 


JOE   SMITH HIS    CLAIMS    AND    CHARACTER.         85 

Testimony  of  Fanny  Brewer,  of  Boston. 

"  Boston-,  September  13,  1842, 
"  To  THE  Public  :  —  I  have  long  desired  that  some  one  who  had 
a.  certain  knoicledge  of  the  hidden  practices  and  abominations  atNau- 
voo,  would  have  the  moral  courage  to  come  out  with  a  full  devel- 
opment; and  my  desires  have  been  realized  in  General  Bennett's 
disclosures.  As  the  ice  is  now  broken,  I,  too,  have  a  tale  to  tell. 
In  the  spring  of  1837,  1  left  Boston  for  Kirtland,  in  all  good  faith, 
to  assemble  with  the  Saints,  as  I  thought,  and  worship  God  more 
perfectly.  On  my  arrival,  I  found  brother  going  to  law  with  brother, 
drutikeimcss  prevailing  to  a  great  extent,  and  every  species  of  wick- 
edness. Joseph  Smith,  a  Prophet  of  God,  (as  he  called  himscf)  ivas 
tinder  arrest  for  employIiNG  two  of  the  Elders  to  kill  a  man 
BY  the  name  of  Grandison  Newell,  belonging  to  Mentor;  but 
was  acquitted,  as  the  most  material  witness  did  not  appear  !  1 ! 
I  am  personally  acquainted  with  one  of  the  employees,  Davis  by 
name,  and  he  frankly  acknowledged  to  me,  that  he  zcas  prepared  to 
du  the  deed  under  the  direction  of  the  Prophet,  and  was  only  prevented 
from  so  doing  by  the  entreaties  of  his  wife.  There  was  much  ex- 
citement against  the  Prophet,  on  another  account,  likewise,  —  an 
c^nlawful  i.n'tercourse  between  himself  and  a  young  orphan 
girl  residi.n'g  in  his  family,  and  under  his  protection  !  !  !  mr. 
Martin  Harris  told  me  that  the  Prophet  was  most  notorious  for  lying 
and  LICENTIOUSNESS  !  !  In  the  fall  of  1837,  the  Smith  family  all 
left  Kirtland,  by  revelation,  (or  necessity.)  for  Missouri.  The 
Prophet  left  between  two  days.  I  carried  from  this  place  to  Kirt- 
land, goods  to  the  amount  of  about  fourteen  hundred  dollars,  as  I  was 
told  I  could  make  ready  sales  to  the  Saints ;  but  I  was  disappoint- 
ed. I  accordingly  sent  them  to  Missouri  to  be  sold  by  H.  lledtield. 
Tiiore  they  were  stored  in  a  private  room.  Smith,  the  Prophet, 
hearing  that  they  were  there,  took  out  a  warrant,  under  pretence 
of  searching  for  stolen  goods,  and  got  them  into  his  possession. 
They  were  then,  by  a  sham  court,  which  he  held,  adjudged  to  him, 
and  the  boxes  were  opened.  As  the  goods  were  taken  out,  piece 
by  piece,  Hyrum  Smith,*  loho  stood  by,  said,  in  the  most  positive 
manner,  that  he  could  swear  to  every  piece,  and  tell  where  they  had 
been  bought,  although  a  Mr.  Pcobbins,  who  was  present,  told  tliem 
that  lie  knew  the  bores,  and  that  the  goods  were  mine,  for  I  had  charged 
him  to  take  care  of  them.  Dr.  Williams,  liUeicise,  told  them  that 
they  tcerc  my  goods,  and  that  Hvrcm  never  saw^  a  piece  of 
THEM  !  !  They,  however,  refused  to  give  them  up,  but,  in  defiance 
of  law  and  justice,  kept  them  for  their  own  profit.  The  Prophet 
has  told  many  stories  about  this  matter,  but  the  above  is  the  true 
one.  /  know  that  many  of  the  Mormons  will  make  any  statemejits 
that  their  Prophet  desires  them  to,  and  have  no  hesitation  in  resorting 
to  tlie  MOST  BAREFACED  PERJURY  to  accomplish  their  purposes  — 
save  their  friends,  or  destroy  their  enemies. 

"I  had  strong  intimations  of  the  truth  of  all  the  matters  disclosed 

*  [It  appe.irs  i'rom  this  testimony,  and  that  of  Willaril  Chase  and  others,  tliat  the 
bf'loved  lIvRi-M  i's  a  prince  of  liari,  scoimdrds,  cut-throals,  and  ruffians,  under  the 
garb  of  religious  sanctity  ;  not  to  be  believed  under  oath.] 

8 


86  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

by  General  Bennett,  some  months  before  they  came  to  the  public 
eye,  by  persons  high  in  the  confidence  of  the  Prophet,  and  wlio  liad 
every  opportunity  of  knowing. 

"  These  are  facts  not  to  be  contradicted,  and  are  but  a  few  out  of 
the  many  I  am  acquainted  with  about  the  Prophet  and  his  friends. 
Nothing  could  induce  me  to  have  my  name  appear  before  the  public, 
but  a  hope  that  the  united  testimony  of  those  who,  by  the  mercy  of 
God,  have  been  delivered  from  the  snares  of  the  villains,  may  be  the 
means  of  redeeming  some  of  my  fellow-beings,  and  especially  my 
own  sex,  from  the  destruction  that  would  fall  upon  them  if  they 
continued  under  the  influence  of  the  vile  impostor. 

"  Fanny  Brewer. 

"Suffolk,  ss.  September  13,  1842. 
"  Then  personally  appeared  the  above-named  Fanny  Brewer,  and 
made  oath,  that  the  foregoing  affidavit,  by  her  subscribed,  is  true. 

"  Before  me, 

"Bradford  Scmnek, 

'■'■Justice  of  the  Peace.'' 


"  Boston,  September  19,  1842. 

"  On  or  about  the  middle  of  June,  1837,  I  rode  with  Joseph  Smith, 
Jr.,  from  Fairport,  Ohio,  to  Kirtland.  When  we  left  Fairport,  we 
had  been  drinking  pretty  freely  ;  I  drank  brandy,  he  brandy  and  ci- 
der, both  together ;  and  when  we  arrived  at  Painsville,  we  drank 
again  ;  and  when  we  arrived  at  Kirlland,  we  were  very  drunk. 

"  In  July,  William  Smith,  one  of  the  twelve  Apostles,  arrived  at 
Kirtland,  from  Chicago,  drunk,  with  his  face  pretty  well  bunged  up; 
he  had  black  eyes  and  bunged  nose,  and  told  John  Johnson  that  he 
had  been  milking  the  Gentiles  to  his  satisfaction,  for  tliat  time. 

"About  the  last  of  August,  1837,  Joseph  Smith,  Brigham  Young, 
and  others,  were  drunk  at  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.'s  liouse,  all  togetiier ; 
and  a  man,  by  the  name  of  Vinson  Knight,  supplied  them  witli  rum, 
brandy,  gin,  and  port  wine,  from  the  cash  store  ;  and  I  worked  iu 
the  lott,  over  head.  He,  Joseph,  told  Knight  not  to  sell  any  of  the 
rum,  brandy,  gin,  or  port  wine,  for  he  wanted  it  for  his  own  use. 
They  were  drunk,  and  drinking,  for  more  than  a  week. 

"  Joseph  Smith  said  that  the  Bank  was  got  up  on  his  having  a  rev- 
elation from  God,  and  said  it  was  to  go  into  circulation  to  milk  the 
Gentiles.  I  asked  Joseph  about  the  money.  He  said  he  could  not 
redeem  it ;  he  was  paid  for  signing  the  bills,  as  any  other  man  would 
be  paid  for  it,  —  so  he  told  ine,  —  and  they  must  do  the  best  they 
could  about  it. 

"October  13. —  Hyrum  Smith's  wife  was  sick,  and  Brigham 
Young  prayed  with  her,  and  laid  on  hands,  and  said  she  would  get 
well ;  but  she  died  at  six  o'clock  at  night. 

"Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  and  others,  went  to  Canada,  in  September. 
Said  he,  Joseph,  had  as  good  a  right  to  go  out  and  get  money,  as 
any  of  the  brethren.  He  took  money,  in  Canada,  from  a  man  by  the 
name  of  Lawrence,  and  promised  him  a  farm,  when  he  arrived  at 
Kirtland  ;  but  when  he  arrived,  Joseph  was  among  the  missing,  and 
no  farm  for  him.     (He  took  nine  hundred  dollars  trora  Lawrence.) 


JOE    SMITH HIS    CLAIMS    AND    CHARACTER  87 

"  William  Smitli  told  Joseph  if  he  did  not  give  him  some  money 
he  would  tell  where  the  Book  of  Mormon  came  from  ;  and  Joseph 
accordmgly  gave  him  what  he  wanted.  G.  B.  Fkost. 

"  Suffolk,  as.  September  19,  1842. 

"Then  personally  appeared  the  aforenamed  G.  B.  Frost,  and  made 
oath  that  the  foregoing  affidavit,  by  him  subscribed,  is  true. 

"Before  me,  Bradford  Sumner, 

"  Justice  of  the  Peace." 

From  Rev.  George  Montgomery  West,  A.  M.,  D.  D.,  the  able 
Defender  of  the  Christian  Faith. 

"Boston,  September  19,  1842. 

"  The  undersigned  is  personally  acquainted  with  Miss  Fanny 
Brewer,  and  has  no  hesitation  in  saying  that  she  sustains  an  unblem- 
ished character  for  truth  and  moral  worth  in  the  city  of  Boston. 

"  The  undersigned  is  also  personally  acquainted  with  Mr.  George 
B.  Frost,  of  the  same  city ;  and  hereby  certifies,  that  he  is  perfectly 
worthy  of  belief,  and  he  now  is,  and  has  been,  for  a  length  of  time 
past,  a  perfectly  temperate  man,  and  an  accredited  member  of  the 
Temperance  Society.  G.  M.  West." 


CHARACTER  OF  JOE  SMITH,  AND  TWO  OF  HIS  AC- 
COMPLICES—WILLIAM LAW  AND  JOHN  TAYLOR  — 
FOR  TRUTH  AND   HONESTY. 

An  article  appeared  in  the  (Nauvoo)  Times  and  Sea- 
sons, of  July  1,  1S42,  from  the  pen  of  General  William 
Law,  (one  of  Joe's  Councillors  of  the  First  Presidency,  se- 
lected by  special  revelation  from  Heaven,  through  Joe,  as 
he  boasts,  for  his  great  piety  and  unquestioned  veracity  !) 
dated  June  17,  1842,  and  headed,  "  much  ado  about 
NOTHING  !  !  "  as  follows  :  — 

"  Where  is  there  a  record  against  any  o?  our  people  for  a.  peniten- 
tiary crime  ?  Not  in  the  State  !  !  Where  is  there  a  record  of 
fine,  or  comUy  imprisonment,  (for  any  breach  of  law,)  against  unij 
of  the  Latter  Day  Saints?  I  know  of  none  in  the  State !  If  then 
they  have  broken  no  law,  they  consequently  have  taken  away  no 
man's  rights,  they  have  infringed  upon  no  man's  liberties." 

Joseph  Smith,  the  Prophet,  and  John  Taylor,  the  Apos- 
tle, (the  senior  and  junior  editors  of  the  Times  and  Sea- 
sons,) endorse  the  statement  in  an  editorial,  as  follows:  — 

"  The  above  are  plain  matters  of  fact  that  every  one  may  become 


88  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

acquainted  with  by  reference  to  the  County  or  State  records  ! 
We  might  add  that  in  regard  to  moral  principles  there  is  no  city 
in  the  State  or  in  the  United  SttUes^  that  can  compare  with  the  city 
of  J\'mtvoo ! .'.'  You  may  hve  in  our  city  for  a  month,  and  not  liear 
an  oath  sworn  —  you  may  be  here  as  long  and  not  see  one  person 
intoxicated ;  so  notorious  are  we  for  sobriety,  that  at  the  time  the 
Washingtonian  Convention  passed  through  our  city,  a  meeting 
was  called  for  them,"  etc.  etc. 

What  unblushing  impudence,  and  barefaced  lying,  in 
the  face  of  recorded  truth !  These  are  a  trio  of  the  most 
Heaven-daring  liars  the  world  ever  saw,  as  will  appear  from 
the  RECORDS  ^nd  facts  following  :  — 

"  The  People  of  the  State  of  Illinois  ts.  Timothy   Lewis, 

(Mormon.) 

"  Indicted  for  larceny,  October  2,  1840.  Sentenced  to  four  years' 
imprisonment  in  the  penitentiary — thirty  days'  solitary  confinement, 
—  for  stealing  horses." 


"  The  People  of  the  State  of  Illinois  vs.  Sally  Castile 
AND  Francis  Castile,  (Mormons.) 
"  Indicted  for  stealing  a  log-chain,  October  5, 1841.  These  defend- 
ants were  convicted  by  a  jury  of  Hancock  county  for  the  above 
theft,  —  new  trial  granted  —  the  venue  changed  to  McDonough, 
tchere  no  witnesses  appeared,  and  they  were  discharged." 


"  The   People   of   the    State   of    Illinois  vs.  Johnson, 

(Mormon.) 

"  Arrested  for  stealing,  and  escaped  from  the  officers." 

"The  People  of  the  State  of  Illinois  vs.  Alanson  Brown, 

(Mormon,  Danite.) 

"  In  jail  under  process  from  McDonough  county  for  stealing,  and 
for  murdering  a  man,  by  stabbing,  in  Hancock." 

"  The    People    of    the    State    of   Illinois    vs.    Gear, 

(Mormon.) 
"  In  jail  for  incest  and  rape  on  his  own  daughter  ! ! !  " 


"  The  People  of  the  State  of  Illinois  vs.   William  Wood, 

(Mormon.) 

"  Change  of  venue  from  Hancock  county  to  McDonough,  and 
sentenced  to  the  'penitentiary  for  two  years,  for  stealing  horses." 

"  The   People   of   the    State    of   Illinois    vs.  — —  Lindsay, 

(Mormon.) 

"  Sent  to  the  penitentiary  from  Adams  county,  for  stealing  a  sad- 
dle from  B.  F.  Marsh,  Esq.,  in  Hancock  county." 


JOE    SMITH HIS    CLAIMS    AND    CHARACTER.         89 

The    above    cases    are   from    the  records  of  Hancock, 
McDonough,  and  Adams  counties. 


From  the  City  Records. 

"State  of  Illiwois,  ;      ■,•     . 
Hancock  County,      \  ''=''"='^'- 

"  Before  me,  John  C.  Bennett,  Mayor  of  the  city  of  Nauvoo,  in 
said  county,  personally  came  H.  G.  Sherwood,  Marshal  of  said  city, 
who  being  duly  sworn  according  to  law,  deposeth  and  saith :  That 
on,  or  about,  the  twenty-second  day  of  April,  1841,  in  the  county  of 
Hancocii,  there  was  stolen  from  his  premises,  or  near  thereto,  one 
one-liorse  wagon,  in  his  custody  as  the  property  of  said  city,  and  this 
deponent  verily  believes  that  Eleazer  King,  Alonzo  F.  King,  and 
Enoch  M.  King,  are  guilty  of  the  fact  charged;  and  further  this  de- 
ponent saith  not.  H.  G.  Sherwood. 

"  Sworn  to,  and  subscribed,  before  me,  at  my  office,  this  twenty- 
third  day  of  April,  1841.  John  C.  Bennett, 

'■'•Mayor  of  the  City  of  jYuuvoo." 


From  the  (Burlington)  Hawk- Eye  and  Iowa  Patriot  —  a  paper 
edited  by  James  G.  Edwards,  Esq. 

"■  Mr.  Editor  :  It  is  with  e.xtreme  reluctance  that  the  under- 
signed are  induced  to  intrude  upon  the  public  what  will  probably, 
by  many  of  your  readers,  be  considered  merely  as  private  grievances. 
But  the  indignities  and  injuries  which  we  have  sutiered  at  the  hands 
of  the  deluded  followers  of  that  wretched  Impostor,  Joe  Smith,  have 
been  so  many  and  frequent,  that  '  forbearance  long  since  ceased  to 
be  a  virtue  ; '  and  a  sense  of  duty  to  ourselves  and  others  impels  us 
to  make  the  following  statements,  which  may  be  the  means  of  pre- 
venting some  individuals  from  making  shipwreck  of  their  fortunes 
and  character,  by  embracing  this  miserable  scheme  of  humbug  and 
delusion. 

"  It  may  be  proper  here  to  remark,  that  we  shall  state  facts  — 
facts  that  can  be  neither  gainsaid  or  denied;  and,  if  half  the  truth 
is  told,  it  will  convince  the  world  that '  truth  is  stranger  than  fiction,' 
and  will  act  like  the  spear  of  Ithuriel,  in  exposing,  in  all  their  deform- 
ity, some  of  the  atrocious  features  of  an  imposture,  as  ridiculous 
and  silly  as  the  designs  of  its  authors  are  dangerous  and  treasonable. 

"  That  there  are  not  so7ne  worthy  men  and  good  citizens  who 
sincerely  believe  in  the  mission  of  Joe  Smith  as  a  Prophet,  we 
should  be  sorry  to  believe  ;  but  in  speaking  of  a  community  like  this, 
we  speak  of  them  collectively,  and  of  the  general  features  of  their 
system. 

•'They  have  now  been  in  our  midst  for  more  than  two  years. 
They  came  among  us  in  a  destitute  and  suffering  condition  ;  a  condi- 
tion that  called  into  lively  exercise  all  the  benevolent  feelings  of 
our  natures  ;  we  believed  that  they  had  been  persecuted  on  account  of 
iheh  religious !  sentiments,  that  a  majority  of  them  were  honest,  and 
8* 


90  HISTORY   OF   THE    SAINTS. 

we  were  disposed  to  give  them  an  opportunity  to  live  down  —  if 
false  —  the  evil  reports  that  have  followed  them,  whenever  they 
have  been  compelled  to  make  a  removal.  In  proof  that  a  kindly 
disposition  has  been  exercised,  we  may  point  to  the  fact,  that  until 
very  recently,  not  a  newspaper  in  their  vicinity  has  published  a 
harsh  remark  in  reference  to  them  or  their  Prophet.  How  has  tlie 
kindness  thus  extended  been  requited  .■'  they  have  rung  the  changes 
on  their  'persecutions  in  Missouri,'  till  it  no  longer  possesses  tiie 
power  to  bind  together  the  discordant  elements  of  Monnonism,  and 
abuse  of  the  men  that  have  opened  their  doors  to  tliem,  and  ever 
treated  them  kindly,  has  become  the  order  of  the  day.  The  events 
of  the  past  year  have  forced  the  conviction  upon  us,  that,  in  relation 
to  their  troubles  in  Missouri,  there  are  '  two  sides  to  the  story.' 

"Three  years  since,  we  could  retire  at  night  without  that  painful 
feeling  of  insecurity  which  now  exists;  then  it  was  unnecessary  to 
lock  our  buildings  to  secure  our  property  from  robbers ;  now,  nothing 
is  safe,  however  strongly  secured  by  bolts  and  bars. 

"  The  undersigned,  having  been  somewhat  in  the  way  of  the  ful- 
filment of  a  pretended  revelation  relative  to  the  building  up  a  city  at 
Montrose,  —  which,  being  interpreted  into  the  unknown  tongue  of 
Mormonism,  meaneth  'Zarahemla,'  —  have  been  the  greatest  suf- 
ferers by  these  depredations  ;  no  less  than  thirteen  Robberies, 
amounting  in  value  to  more  than  One  Thousand  Dollars,  having 
been  committed  on  our  property  since  the  Mormons  came  here,  and 
though  we  have  offered  rewards  for  the  detection  of  tlie  thieves  and 
the  recovery  of  the  property,  we  have  never,  in  a  single  instance,  suc- 
ceeded in  accomplishing  either.  A  case  in  which  we  made  an 
attempt  to  ferret  out  the  thieves,  and  were  thwarted  by  the  direct 
interference  of  Joe  Smith,  will  presently  be  mentioned. 

"  We  subjoin  an  account  of  the  various  robberies  :  — 

"  Robbery  1st. —  Store  robbed  of  a  general  assortment  of  goods,  a 
Mormon  Bishop  (Vinson  Knight)  at  the  time  living  overhead,  with 
only  a  thin  floor  between. 

"  Robbery  2nd.  —  Warehouse  broken  open,  and  robbed  of  one 
barrel  of  pork,  two  barrels  sugar,  and  five  kegs  lard. 

"Robbery  3rd. —  Smoke-house  entered  by  breaking  lock,  and 
robbed  of  33  hams  and  11  shoulders. 

"  Robbery  4th. —  1^  barrels  salt  stolen  from  the  building  where  it 
was  stored. 

"  Robbery  5th.  —  1  barrel  salt. 

"  Robbery  6th.  —  1  saddle,  bridle,  and  martingal,  stolen  from 
stable. 

"  Robbery  7th.  —  4  wagon  wheels  stolen  from  the  wagon  standing 
in  front  of  the  house. 

"Robbery  8th.  —  3  saddles,  bridles,  and  martingals  stolen  from 
stable. 

"  Robbery  9th.  —  60  bushels  wheat,  in  sacks,  stolen  from  granary. 

"  Robbery  10th.  —  Warehouse  again  entered  by  breaking  lock, 
and  robbed  of  6  boxes  glass,  150  pounds  bacon,  (together  with  2 
boxes  axes  belonging  to  C.  Peck,  Esq.) 

"Robbery  11th.  —  6  barrels  salt,  the  salt  taken  Jrom  the  barrels, 
and  the  barrels  left. 


JOE  SMITH HIS  CLAIMS  AND  CHARACTER.    91 

"  Robbery  12tli.  —  300  to  400  bushels  of  com  stolen  from  tlie  crib 
during  the  past  summer,  at  various  times. 

"Robbery  13th.  —  1  wheel  stolen  from  a  chariotee  standimr  in 
the  enclosure  of  the  undersigned.  —  These  are  the  principal  robberies, 
to  say  nothing  of  petty,  every  day  stealing  of  trifles,  which  is  an- 
noying enough.  The  character  of  the  articles  stolen  precludes  the 
idea  that  they  were  taken  to  any  considerable  distance  from  Mon- 
trose, or  JVauvoo  I  The  robbery  last  mentioned  must  have  been 
from  sheer  malice,  as  one  wheel  of  a  carriage  could  be  of  no  benefit 
to  any  one. 

"  The  premises  from  which  our  conclusions  are  drawn,  that  tlie 
greater  part  of  this  mischief  is  done  by  Mormons,  are,  that  in  every 
case  of  robbery,  the  silly  story  is  at  once  raised  by  them,  and  circu- 
lated with  the  greatest  industry,  that  we  have  secreted  our  own 
property  for  the  sake  of  raising  an  excitement  against  the  Mormons  ; 
or  the  robbery  is  justified,  and  surprise  expressed  that  we  don't  lose 
more  than  we  do,  because  we  oppose  the  swindling  schemes  of  their 
Prophet.  As  before  stated,  the  stand  taken  by  us  to  prevent  the 
building  up  of  Montrose  by  the  '  Latter  Days,'  had  rather  thwarted 
tlieir  plans  ;  the  Prophet  himself  proclaimed  that  '  he  did  not  care 

how  much  was  stolen  from  the  K s,'  thus  giving  full  license  to 

his  followers  to  go  on  and  plunder  as  much  as  they  pleased,  often, 
indeed,  in  his  discourses  justifying  theft,  by  citing  the  example  of 
Christ  while  passing  through  the  cornfield.  On  one  occasion  he  said 
the  world  owed  him  a  good  living,  and  if  he  could  not  get  it  without, 
he  would  steal  it  — '  and  catch  me  at  it,'  said  he,  '  if  you  can.'  This 
is  the  doctrine  that  is- taught — not  to  be  caught  stealing  —  and  it 
has  for  months  been  the  common  talk  among  the  understrappers  of 
Joe  Smith  that  we  should  be  driven  from  the  place;  —  the  various 
robberies  of  which  we  have  given  a  history  show  the  means  by 
which  such  a  result  is  to  be  brought  about. 

"  We  come  now  to  a  circumstance  which  goes  clearly  to  show 
the  hollow-hearted  character  of  the  scoundrel  Prophet  and  the  other 
leading  Mormons,  and  which  convinces  us  that  all  their  pretended 
zeal  for  the  detection  of  villany  and  the  punishment  of  offenders  is 
a  mere  rMse  to  give  persons  abroad  a  favorable  opinion  of  their 
morals,  and  is  of  a  piece  with  the  farce  exhibited  in  the  enactment 
of  a  law  by  the  City  Council  of  Nauvoo,  tliat  no  ardent  spirits 
should  be  sold  within  the  corporate  limits  of  Nauvoo,  under  severe 
penalties,  yet  winking  at  the  establishment  of  a  drunkery  at  the 
very  portals  of  tlie  Temple,  and  in  full  view  of  the  Mayor's  ofiice. 
The  morning  after  robbery  No.  10,  convinced  by  traces  in  the  sand 
on  the  bank  of  the  river,  that  the  property  stolen  had  been  taken 
across  the  river,  —  with  a  view  to  obtain,  if  possible,  a  further  clew  to 
tlie  robbers,  one  of  the  undersigned,  accompanied  by  a  young  man 
from  Ohio,  went  to  one  of  the  leaders  of  the  society  (Stephen  Mark- 
ham)  at  Nauvoo,  and  solicited  his  aid  in  ferreting  out  the  thieves, 
which  he  appeared  quite  willing  to  render ;  we  examined  several  skiffs 
along  the  river  bank,  and  at  length  came  to  one  belonging  to  J.  C 
Annis,  an  Elder.  Markham  observed  that  he  believed  James  Dunn 
(a  son-in-law  of  Annis)  was  the  thief,  and  added,  '  Old  Annis  is,  ia 


92  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

my  opinion,  no  better.'  Pointing  to  the  skiff,  he  continued,  '  If 
that  sliiff  could  speali,  it  would  tell  you  wliere  your  goods  are.' 
Some  further  conversation  was  had,  as  to  the  best  plan  of  making 
some  discoveries  of  the  robbers,  and  he  (Markham)  gave  the  names 
of  James  Dunn,  an  Elder;  D.  B.  Smith,  a  relative  of  the  Prophet 

Joe  ;  O.  P.  Rockwell ;  Stevens ;  J.  D.  Parker,  Elder  and  Capt. 

Nauvoo  Legion  ;  H.  G.  Sherwood,  City  Marshal  and  Elder,  as 
being  very  suspicious  characters,  at  the  same  time  r>. marking  that 
he  did  not  believe  Sherwood  would  be  concerned  in  committing 
any  of  the  robberies  himself,  but  that  he  would  probably  be  willing 
to  share  the  plunder. 

"  Tlie  young  man  that  accompanied  the  writer  observed  that  he 
formerly  knew  D.  B.  Smith  in  Ohio,  and  he  thought  he  could  gain 
his  confidence,  and,  by  stratagem,  obtain  information  of  the  place  of 
concealment  of  the  stolen  goods;  this,  by  the  advice  of  a  magistrate 
and  a  legal  gentleman,  he  undertook.  To  gain  their  confidence  he 
found  an  easy  matter,  and  he  soon  had  an  interview  with  Dunn, 
Smith,  and  Rockwell,  who,  he  avers,  proposed  to  him  to  aid  them  in 
robbino-  the  store  of  the  undersigned.  To  this  he  assented,  and  the 
arrancrements  were  made  on  their  part  to  commit  the  robbery,  and  on 
ours  to  take  them  in  the  act.  It  is  believed  that  up  to  this  moment 
Markham  was  desirous  that  the  guilty  should  be  caught ;  but  he, 
with  the  other  leaders,  found  the  viatter  wtis  going  too  far  —  that,  if 
we  succeeded  in  catching  so  many  of  their  elders,  it  would  raise  an 
excitement  against  them,  and  show  the  world  their  true  character 
Here,  too,  was  a  fine  opportunity  for  the  gratification  of  those 
vindictive  feelings  by  which  it  is  well  known  Joe  Smith  is  ever 
actuated;  the  Prophet  therefore  caused  the  young  man  to  be  ar- 
rested, ordered  him  to  give  up  every  thing  he  had  on  his  person, 
cocked  and  presented  his  rifle,  and  threatened  to  shoot — to  use  his 
own  language  on  the  occasion  —  'quicker  than  hell  can  scorch 
A  FEATHER.'  The  young  man  was  taken  before  the  Mayor's  Court; 
the  six  individuals  above  named  were  then  called  as  witnesses  ;  and, 
though  they  appeared  to  rejoice  at  their  narrow  escape  through  the 
kindness  of  their  leaders,  they  showed  a  spirit  of  vindictivencsa 
towards  the  young  man  who,  from  a  sincere  desire  that  justice  might 
be  done,  consented  to  watch  their  movements ;  —  they  testified  that  he 
had  counterfeit  coin  in  his  possession.  On  the  part  of  the  defence, 
it  was  proved  that  the  coin  was  loaned  to  him  by  the  Magistrate, 
before  alluded  to,  and  the  writer,  —  for  the  purpose  of  showing  it,  to 
induce  them  to  believe  that  he  could  supply  any  quantity,  and  to 
inspire  them  with  confidence  in  him.  Yet,  with  all  this  testimony 
going  to  show  his  good  intentions,  that  the  coin  was  given  to  him 
for  a  specific  purpose,  and  that  he  was  engaged  in  a  laudable  en- 
deavor to  bring  the  guilty  to  justice,  this  Mormon  Court  Martial 
bound  him  over  for  his  appearance  at  Court :  and  where  was  Stephen 
Markham,  the  Mormon  leader,  who  could  in  one  moment  have  set 
the  matter  in  its  true  light .-'  The  moment  the  young  man  was 
arrested,  he  mounted  his  horse  and  started  for  Quincy,  and  thus 
avoided  giving  testimony  that  would  at  once  have  set  the  young 
man  at  liberty. 


JOE    SMITH HIS    CLAIMS    AND    CHARACTER.         93 

"  With  this  matter  is  closely  connected  the  conspiracy,  as  the 
Mormons  please  to  call  it.  A  young  man  living  with  Joe,  a  relative 
of  the  Elect  Lady,  (Joe's  wife,)  by  the  name  of  Lorenzo  D.  Wasson, 
and  O.  P.  Rockwell,  complained  that  the  undersigned  had  conspired, 
&c.,  to  unlawfully  procure  an  indictment. 

"  The  same  six  witnesses  that  appeared  in  the  former  case  were 
sworn  on  the  part  of  the  prosecutor.  The  undersigned,  viewing  the 
whole  proceedings  with  that  contempt  which  they  merited,  asked 
the  witnesses  no  questions,  and  introduced  no  witnesses  themselves; 
yet,  with  all  their  efforts,  the  complaint  was  unsustained  by  a 
shadovv  of  truth.  To  have  done  any  thing  with  us  under  such  cir- 
cumstances would  have  been  too  barefaced  even  for  a.  Mormon  Court 
Martial,  and  we  were,  of  course,  immediately  discharged  by  General 
Bennett,  the  Chief  Justice  of  the  Mayor's  Court.  That  this  malicious 
prosecution  was  instigated  and  set  on  foot  by  Joe  Smith,  it  is  use- 
less for  him  to  deny  ;  he  said  previously  that  he  would  have  us 
arrested,  and  afterwards  boasted  that  he  had.  As  for  his  tool,  Lo- 
renzo D.  Wasson,  we  have  only  to  say,  that  he  did  not  even  make 
his  appearance  in  Court;  it  was  sufficient  for  him  that,  to  please 
the  'money-digger,'  he  had  perjured  himself  for  the  purpose  of  in- 
juring one  who  never  saw  him  or  heard  of  him  before. 

"  The  evening  that  these  proceedings  took  place,  and  during  our 
absence,  a  valuable  horse  was  poisoned,  and  the  evening  subse- 
quently another  was  poisoned.  These  two  horses  were  standing  in  a 
stable,  with  their  heads  to  open  windows ;  three  other  horses,  not 
thus  exposed,  escaped. 

"  Would  it  be  taxing  our  credulity  too  much  to  believe  that  a  man 
who  could  conceive  a  murderous  plot  to  assassinate  a  man  (Mr. 
Grandison  Newell  of  Ohio)  that  opposed  his  designs,  and  that  hus  a 
'  D.\NiTE  Band'  'to  haul  his  enemies  into  the  brush,'  and  a  'De- 
stroying Angel,'  commissioned  to  kill  tlaeir  cattle,  burn  their  build- 
ings, poison  their  wells,  and  destroy  their  lives,  if  necessary  to  the 
accomplishment  of  his  infamous  designs,  —  would  not  for  a  moment 
hesitate  to  employ  desperadoes  to  commit  any,  or  all,  of  the  acts 
of  outrage  with  which  we  have  been  visited.' 

"  Allusion  has  been  made  to  a  pretended  revelation,  which  con- 
flicts with  the  interests  of  the  undersigned  and  others.  Our  object 
being  to  strip  from  this  Impostor  the  '  silver  veil '  that  covers  his 
hideousness,  we  shall,  in  a  future  article,  give  a  full  history  of  the 
revelation,  and  the  interest  with  which  it  conflicts.  It  may  appear 
to  some  that  our  remarks  about  this  bold  Blasphemer  are  harsh  in 
the  extreme ;  but  a  moment's  reflection  will  convince  any  one,  that 
he  is  cither  what  he  claims  to  be,  a  Prophet  of  the  Lord,  or  a  scoun- 
drel without  one  redeeming  quality,  and  capable  of  doing  any  deed  of 
darkness.  "  D.  W.  KiLBonRN., 

"Edward  KiLEouRN. 

"  IMoNTROSE,  Iowa,      ) 
September -20,  1S41."  \ 

Hundreds  of  such  cases  might  be  enumerated,  but  the 
above  will  suffice. 


94  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS 

Few  can  doubt  the  profanity  of  many  of  the  citizens  of 
Nauvoo,  and  the  Prophet  Joe,  in  particular.  Mr.  Benja- 
min AvisE,.of  Carthage,  said  that  the  first  time  he  ever  saw 
Joe  and  heard  him  speak,  lie  sivorc  an  oath  !  Joe  is  noto- 
riously profane,  but  he  says  God  will  not  notice  him  in 
cursing  the  damned  Gentiles  ! 

All  who  are  acquainted  with  the  Prophet  know  that  he 
gets  most  gloriously  drunk,  occasionally ;  but  he  says  he 
only  does  this  to  try  the  faith  of  the  Saints,  and  show  them 
that  he  is  fallible,  like  other  men. 

I  recollect  once  that  I  was  taking  tea  at  Joe's  house, 
when  there  were  present,  besides  myself,  Mrs.  Merrick 
and  several  gentlemen.  Joe  was  in  a  very  glorious  state  ; 
so  intoxicated,  indeed,  that  he  could  scarcely  hold  up  his 
head.  The  Elect  Lady,  Emma,  having  left  the  room  in 
disgust  at  her  husband's  beastly  state,  the  Prophet  began  to 
fancy  that  we  were  all  suspiciously  observing  him  ;  and  I 
shall  never  forget  the  ludicrous  gravity  in  which  he  leaned 
forward  over  the  table,  and  addressing  Mrs.  Merrick, 
hiccoughed  out,  "  Sister  —  Blerrick  —  do  —  you  — feel 
ruined  ? "  Joe  took  the  bowl  of  Bacchus  that  day  with 
a  perfect  looseness  ! 

I  recollect,  upon  another  occasion,  when  the  female  por- 
tion of  Doctor  O'Harra's  family  were  on  a  visit  at  old  Mrs. 
Smith's,  Joe  happened  in,  tolerably  drunk,  and  commenced 
discoursing  in  a  very  low  and  vulgar  manner,  much  to  the 
annoyance  of  the  ladies.  After  he  had  taken  his  exit, 
Miss  Margaret  O'Harra  observed,  "  What  ruffian  is 
that,  pray?"  To  which  the  old  lady  replied,  "  O,  I  per- 
ceive you  are  not  acquainted  with  our  folks ;  that  is  our 
son,  Joseph,  the  Prophet."  I  thank  Miss  O'Harra  for  the 
suggestion.  "  The  Ruffian  Prophet  "  is  quite  an  appro- 
priate name  for  the  beast.  The  reader  will  perceive  that 
Joe  has  not  that  regard  for  temperance  that  his  vote  on  the 
city  temperance  ordinance,  which  I  wrote  and  procured 
him  to  present  to  the  Council,  would  seem  to  indicate.  His 
advocacy  of  that  wholesome  measure  was  a  mere  ruse 
for  foreign  consumption. 

It  would  appear,  likewise,  from  the  following  complaint, 
taken  from  the  city  records,  that  there  is  some  spirit  sold, 
and  consequently  drank,  in  the  Holy  City. 


JOE    SMITH HIS    CLAIMS    AND    CHARACTER.         95 

"  To  John  C.  Bennett,  Mayor  of  the  City  of  Nauvoo. 

"Respected  Sir, — 

"  I  have  complaints  to  make,  against  the  following  indi- 
viduals, for  selling  spirituous  liquors,  contrary  to  the  laws  of  this 
city,  viz. :  —  John  Mcllwrick  and  Ebenezer  Jennings. 

"  John  Mcllwrick,  for  retailing  whisky  to  Margaret  Robinson, 
on  the  twenty-first  of  April,  1842.  Witnesses,  —  Alice  Martin  and 
Lucy  Clayton. 

"  Ebenezer  Jennings,  for  retailing  wliisky,  on  the  seventeenth 
of  March,  1842.     Witness,  —  Mary  Hardman. 

"  /  am  sorry  to  sec  the  drunkenness  that  has  of  late  manifested 
itself «'«  our  city,  and  for  one  would  rejoice  to  see  it  put  to  an  end. 
Cases  are  almost  daily  occurring  ;  but,  for  want  of  time,  I  ain  not 
able  to  obtain  the  necessary  evidence.  The  above  cases  are  collect- 
ed, merely  to  show  to  the  individuals  concerned,  that  people  are 
aware  of  their  transgression  of  the  laws  ;  and  if  the  law  is  put  in 
force  upon  them,  I  am  in  hopes  tliat  it  will  serve  as  a  warning  and 
restraint  for  the  future.  Yours,  with  respect, 

"  William  Clayton. 

"Nauvoo  Citv,  JUay  9,  1842." 

When  liars,  black-hearted  liars,  —  such  as  the  holy  trio, 
Smith,  Law,  and  Taylor,  —  are  so  barefaced  as  to  chal- 
lenge the  records,  their  refuge  of  lies  shall  not  cover  them. 

"  Because  ye  have  said,  We  have  made  a  covenant  with  death, 
and  with  hell  are  we  at  agreement :  when  the  overflowing  scourge 
sliall  pass  through,  it  shall  not  come  unto  us :  for  we  have  made  lies 
our  refuge,  and  under  falsehood  have  we  hid  ourselves."  —  Isaiah 
28:  15. 

"  And  your  covenant  with  death  sliall  be  annulled,  and  your 
agreement  with  hell  shall  not  stand  ;  when  tlie  overflowing  scourge 
shall  pass  through,  then  shall  ye  be  trodden  down  by  it."  —  Isaiak 
28:  18. 

It  is  very  evident,  from  the  above,  that  these  pretended 
men  of  God,  who  speak  as  they  are  "  moved  by  the  Holy 
Ghost,"  are  not  in  all  cases  to  be  depended  upon,  even 
when  they  make  careful  and  deliberate  statements  through 
their  public  newspaper,  the  acknowledged  organ  of  their 
Church,  and  the  frequent  medium  of  their  inspired  com- 
munications to  the  world.  Is  it  not  plain,  that  even  the 
Prophet  can  sometimes  be  mistaken  in  his  assertions,  even 
if  we  acquit  him  of  the  guilt  of  lying,  by  supposing  that  he 
is  ignorant  of  the  notorious  facts  we  have  quoted  1 

It  would  also  seem  that  the  Holy  City  of  Nauvoo  is  not 
quite  so  pure  and  inoffensive  a  place  as  has  been  represent- 
ed ;  but  that,  on  the  contrary,  whatever  may  be  the  moral 


96  HISTORY   OP    THE    SAINTS. 

professions  made,  the  practice  does  not  altogether  conform 
thereto ;  and  that  there  is  ahnost  as  much  depravity  as  is 
commonly  found  in  a  Gentile  city  of  the  same  size. 


JOE'S   BANKRUPT  APPLICATION. 

The  Bankrupt  law,  section  2,  provides  that  no  convey- 
ances of  property  shall  be  made  in  contemplation  of  bank- 
ruptcy, subsequent  to  the  1st  of  January,  1841;  and  an 
Act  concerning  Religious  Societies,  under  which  the  Mor- 
mon Church  was  incorporated,  provides  for  the  appoint- 
ment of  TRUSTEES,  not  a  sole  trustee  in  trust,  who 
are  authorized  "to  purchase  a  quantity  of  land  not  exceed- 
ing five  acres,"  6lc.  &c.     See  act  approved  Feb.  6,  1835. 


From  a  Book  of  Mortgages  and  Bonds,  page  95. 

"City  OF  Nauvoo,  Hancock  (To.,  llliiiois,  ( 
Ftbrtiary^,  A.  D.  1842.  \ 

"  To  the  County  Recorder  of  the  county  of  Hancock  • 
"Dear  Sir,— 

"At  a  meeting  of  the  'Church  of  Latter  Day  Saints'  at 
this  place,  on  Saturday  the  30th  day  of  January,  A.  D.  1841,  1  was 
elected  sole  Trustee  for  said  Church,  to  hold  my  office  durln<r  life, 
(my  successor  to  be  the  First  Presidency  of  said  Church,)  and  vested 
with  plenary  powers  as  sole  Trustee  in  Trust  for  the  Church  of  Jesus 
Christ  of  Latter  Day  Saints,  to  receive,  acquire,  manage  and  convey 
property,  real,  personal,  or  mixed,  for  the  sole  use  and  benefit  of  said 
Church,  agreeable  to  the  provisions  of  an  act  entitled  'An  Act  con- 
cerning Religious  Societies,'  approved  February  6,  1835. 

"Joseph  Smith,  [L.  S.]  " 

"State  of  Illinois,  j 
Hancock  County,       j  ^^' 

"  This  day  personally  appeared  before  me, 
Daniel  H.  Wells,  a  justice  of  the  peace,  within  and  for  the  county 
of  Hancock  aforesaid,  Isaac  Galland,  Robert  B.  Thompson,  and 
John  C.  Bennett,  who,  being  duly  sworn,  depose  and  say  that  the 
foregoing  certificate  of  Joseph  Smith  is  true. 

"  Isaac   Galland, 
"  R.  B.  Thompson, 
"John  C.Bennett. 
"  Sworn  to  and  subscribed  this  third  day  of  February,  in  the  year 
of  our  Lord  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  forty-one,  before  me, 
"Daniel  H  Wells,  Justice  of  the  Peace." 


JOE    SMITH HIS    CLAIMS    AND    CHARACTER.        9T 


Compendious  Extracts  from  the  Records  of  Hancock  County. 

"  In  book  R,  page  21,  there  is  a  deed  from  Joseph  Smith  and  wife 
to  Julia  M.  Smith,  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  F.  G.  W.  Smith,  and  Alex- 
ander Smith,  (the  first  an  adopted  daughter,  and  the  remainder  all 
small  children  of  Joseph  and  Emma  Smith,)  executed  December  21, 
1641,  and  recorded  January  1,  1842,  for  lots  1,  2,  3,  and  4,  block 
12,  in  the  city  of  Nauvoo,  —  for  the  consideration  of  '  one  hundred 
dollars  to  them  in  hand  paid,' — property  worth  about  three  thou- 
sand dollars. 

"  Another  in  the  same  book,  p.  151,  from  the  same  to  the  same, 
(Joseph  Smith  and  wife  to  their  children,)  executed  March  17, 
1842,  and  recorded  April  9,  1842,  for  the  east  half  of  south-east 
31,  5  north,  8  west;  and  west  half  of  north-west  5,  and  east  half 
of  north-east  6,  4  north,  8  west — for  the  consideration  of  two  thou- 
sand dollars. 

"  Another  in  the  same  book,  (R,)  pages  159,  160,  and  161,  from 
Joseph  Smith  and  wife  to  Joseph  Smith,  as  sole  Trustee  in  trust  for 
the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter  Day  Saints,  executed  October 
5,  1841,  and  recorded  April  18,  1842,  {the  same  day  he  visited 
Carthage  to  file  his  schedule  for —  banlcruptcy,  and  I  have  no  doubt 
the  deed  was  executed  on  the  IGth,  17th,  18th,  or  19th  of  April, 
1842,  and  ante-dated  to  October  5,  1841,  for  so  Joe  informed  me, 
and  Dr.  Marshall,  Esquire  Sherman,  and  others,  of  Carthage,  stated 
that  the  writing  was  fresh,  and  changed  materially  in  appeaj-ance 
soon  after  ;  and  on  the  7th  of  July,  1842,  Calvin  A.  Warren,  Esq., 
one  of  Joe's  Attorneys  in  Bankruptcy,  acknowledged  to  Dr.  Mar- 
shall, the  County  Clerk,  and  myself,  in  the  Clerk's  Office,  that  the 
deed  was  executed  in  April, '42,  and  not  in  October,  '41,  as  afore- 
said, but  that  he  was  not  privy  to  the  fraud)  —  for  (230)  two  hundred 
and  thirty  lots,  or  thereabouts,  mostly  in  the  '  White  Purchase,'  for 
tlie  consideration  of  the  sum  of  one  dollar  to  them  in  hand  paid, 
on  a  just  and  lawful  settlement  between  themselves  in  person,  and 
the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter  Day  Saints,  —  Property  worth 
from  one  hundred  and  fifty  to  lico  hundred  and  thirty  thousand  dol- 
lars, at  the  rate  that  Joe  is  selling  it — from  five  to  fifteen  hundred 
dollars  a  lot. 

'■•  Another  in  book  I,  page  329,  from  Ebenezer  F.  Wiggins  to 
Emma  Smith,  executed  May  13,  1841,  and  recorded  June  30, 
1841,  for  west  half  of  north-west  quarter  30,  7  north,  8  west,  and 
the  west  half  of  north-east  30,  7  north,  8  west,  for  the  consideration 
of  (ii^2,700)  two  thousand  seven  hundred  dollars,  —  paid  for  by  Joe, 
and  worth  about  three  thousand  dollars. 

*'  Another  in  the  same  book,  (I,)  page  243,  from  Daniel  H.  Wells 
and  wife  to  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  (Joe's  son,)  executed  May  5,  1841, 
and  recorded  May  6,  1841,  for  lots  1  and  4,  block  22,  in  Wells's  ad- 
dition to  Nauvoo,  for  the  consideration  of  one  hundred  dollars. 

"  Another  in  the  same  book,  page  354,  from  Robert  B.  Thompson 
and  wife  to  Emma  Smith,  (Joe's  wife,)  executed  July  24,  1841, 
and  recorded  July  27,  1841,  for  south-east  fractional  quarter  of 
section  2,  6  north,  9  west,  containing  123  43-100  acres,  for  the  con- 
sideration of  ($4,000)  four  thousand  dollars. 

9 


98  HISTORY   OP   THK    SAINTS. 

"  Another  in  same  book,  page  355,  from  same  to  Frederick  G.  W. 
Smith,  (Joe's  son,)  executed  July  24,  1841,  and  recorded  July 
27,  1H41,  for  part  of  block  15G,  in  Nauvoo,  for  the  consideration 
of  ($500)  five  hundred  dollars." 

If  an  official  certificate  is  required,  call  upon  Chauncey 
Robinson,  Esq.,  the  Recorder  of  Hancock,  and  he  will 
certify  that  these  are  correct  extracts  from  the  county 
records.  There  are  various  other  matters  of  record  that 
could  be  made  to  operate  against  this  king  of  swindlers 
and  impostors,  Joe  Smith ;  but  I  presume  that  the  fore- 
going will  be  sufficient  to  give  him  a  comfortable  home  in 
the  State  Penitentiary,  at  Alton,  for  some  years  to  come, 
if  Missouri  does  not  get  him  first. 

If  oral  testimony  is  required,  call  upon  General  George 
W.  Robinson,  Colonel  Francis  M.  Higbee,  and  others, 
who  are  acquainted  with  the  transactions.  Call  out  these 
witnesses  in  relation  to  the  sham  sales  of  valuable  property 
made  to  Apostle  Willard  Richards,  and  Bishop  N.  K. 
Whitney,  and  others,  by  Joe,  in  order  to  prepare  for  the 
bankruptcy.  The  Hotchkiss  Purchase,  called  Church 
property,  —  but  which  is  not  paid  for,  —  was  given  in  by 
Joe  in  his  schedule  as  his  own  individual  property,  which 
it  undoubtedly  was ;  but  the  White  Purchase  (south-east 
fractional  quarter  of  section  2,  6  north,  9  west,)  which  IS 
PAID  FOR,  was  deeded  to  Thompson,  Joe's  clerk,  who  had 
no  property,  and  from  Thompson  to  Emma  Smith,  (Joe's 
wife,)  and  from  Joseph  Smith  and  wife  to  Joseph  Smith, 

SOLE    TRUSTEE    IN    TRUST,    &i,C. 

Remember  that  the  White  Purchase  was  called  Church 
property,  but  it  was  and  is  Joe's  own  individual  estate. 
He  said  in  a  public  congregation  in  Nauvoo,  a  (ew  weeks 
ago,  "I  own  a  million  of  dollars  in  property,  in  this  city 
and  around  it."  Can  this  swindler  take  the  benefit  of  the 
bankrupt  law  !  Never  !  No,  never  ! !  Let  a  prosecution 
be  at  once  instituted  against  his  Holiness,  and  let  the  law 
have  its  just  operations  once. 

I  shall  now  give  the  testimony  of  the  Messrs.  Kilbourns, 
of  Iowa,  in  relation  to  Joe's  swindling  operations  in  Iowa 
lands. 


JOE    SMITH HIS    CLAIMS    AND    CHARACTER.        99 

From  the  Hawk-Eye  and  Patriot,  October  7,  1841. 

"  It  is  generally  known,  that  a  tract  of  land,  containing  119,000 
acres,  lying  in  the  extreme  southern  part  of  our  Territory,  which 
from  its  form,  —  bounded  as  it  is  on  the  east  by  the  Mississippi,  and 
on  the  south  and  west  by  the  Des  Moines  River,  —  may  not  inaptly 
be  termed  the  Delta  of  Iowa,  was  in  18*^4  reserved  by  treaty  for  the 
use  of  the  '  Half  Breeds  of  the  Sac  and  Fox  Nation  of  Indians  ; 
they  holding  it  by  the  same  title  that  other  Indian  lands  are  held,' — 
i.  e.  possession,  —  the  United  States  retaining  a  reversionary  interest, 
or  the  right  to  purchase  it.  In  June,  1834,  Congress  relinquished  to 
the  '  Half-Breeds  of  the  Sac  and  Fox  Nation  of  Indians  '  this  re- 
versionary interest,  and  authorized  them  to  transfer  their  portions 
thereof  by  sale,  devise,  or  descent. 

"  By  an  unaccountable  oversight,  the  names  of  the  individuals 
intended  to  be  benefited  by  this  reservation  of  land,  were  neither 
introduced  into  the  treaty  nor  in  the  act  of  Congress  alluded  to, 
and  the  term  '  Half  Breeds '  of  the  Sac  and  Fox  Nation  was  so 
indefinite,  that  a  wide  door  was  at  once  opened  for  the  introduction 
of  spurious  and  doubtful  claims,  and  from  forty  or  fifty  in  number, 
tliey  soon  increased  to  one  hundred  and  sixty. 

"  In  the  summer  and  fall  of  1836,  a  company  of  gentlemen  from 
New  York  made  extensive  purchases  of  Half  Breed  shares.  On 
account  of  the  intimate  knowledge  that  Doctor  Galland  was  sup- 
posed to  have  of  the  '  Half  Breeds,'  he  was  admitted  as  a  member  of 
this  company,  and  was  constituted  one  of  their  five  trustees.  Their 
confidence,  however,  in  his  integrity  was  of  short  duration,  and  as  a 
majority  of  the  trustees  controlled  the  affairs  of  the  company,  his 
power  to  injure  them  was  of  short  continuance. 

"  In  the  winter  of  1837-8,  a  law  was  passed  for  the  partition  of 
the  Half  Breed  tract;  commissioners  were  appointed  to  receive 
testimony,  &c. ;  the  succeeding  legislature,  however,  repealed  the 
law,  and  left  the  matter,  if  possible,  worse  than  before.  Every 
attempt  that  had  been  made  to  adjust  the  title,  had  not  only  signally 
failed,  but  seemed  to  increase  the  difficulties  that  clustered  around 
it,  and  the  public  mind  had  settled  down  into  the  conviction  that 
any  further  effort  of  the  kind  would  be  entirely  fruitless. 

"  The  ingenuity  of  Doctor  Galland,  however,  found,  in  this  state 
of  things,  a  fine  field  for  the  exercise  of  his  peculiar  talents ;  and  in 
the  year  1839,  he  matured  the  plan  of  a  stupendous  fraud.  He 
wrote  to  Joe  Smith,  —  who  was  then  most  righteously  imprisoned 
in  Missouri,  on  charges  of  High  Treason,  Burglary,  Jirson,  &c.  &c., 
—  inviting  him  to  purchase  his  land  at  Nauvoo, — 47  acres.  —  Smith, 
after  making  his  escape,  complied,  and  brought  on  his  half-starved 
followers,  a  large  number  of  whom  settled  on  the  '  Half  Breed 
Reserve  '  in  Iowa.  Doctor  G.  then  commenced  selling  Half  Breed 
lands,  giving  therefor  warrantee  deeds,  whicn  of  course  could  con- 
vey no  title  while  the  lands  remained  undivided.  He  at  first 
asserted  that  he  was  the  owner  of  seven  tenths  of  the  tract,  and 
finally  claimed  to  be  the  sole  proprietor. 

"  That  he  might  the  more  successfully  carry  out  the  scheme  of 
swindling  thus  commenced,  he  attached  himself  to  the  Mormon 


100  HISTORY    OF   THE    SAINTS. 

Church !  became  a  confederate  of  Joe  Smith,  and  in  order  to  dupe 
persons  daily  arriving  among  them,  he  deeded  to  Mormon  Bishops 
and  Prophets,  thousands  and  tens  of  thousands  of  acres  of  the  reser- 
vation alluded  to,  and  they  are  daily  deeding  by  warrantee  deeds 
the  lands  thus  acquired,  and  receiving  therefor  a  valuable  consid- 
eration. '^ 

"  By  a  recent  judicial  decision  it  is  ascertained  that  the  interest  to 
which  this  man  Galland  is  entitled,  is  but  a  small,  undefined,  undi- 
vided portion  of  the  Half  Breed  reservation. 

"Our  object  is  not  so  much  to  draw  the  portrait  of  Galland, — 
for  his  character  is  too  well  known  to  require  an  extended  notice 
here,  —  as  to  show  the  connection  between  him  and  the  swindling 
leaders  of  the  Mormon  society.  With  a  full  knowledge  of  all  the 
facts  here  stated,  he  is  sent  out  with  a  '  Proclamation  to  the  Saints 
abroad  —  Greeting ;'  signed  by  Joseph  Smith,  Sidney  Rigdon,  and 
Hyrum  Smith,  —  the  two  latter  of  whom,  the  Times  and  Seasons 
informs  us, '  have  been  appointed,  by  revelation.  Prophets,  Seers,  and 
Revelators,'  —  in  which  it  is  said  that  'he  (Galland)  is  the  hon- 
ored instrument  the  Lord  used  to  prepare  a  home  for  us  when  we 
were  driven  from  our  inheritance,  having  given  him  control  of  vent 
bodies  of  land,  and  -prepared  his  heart  to  make  the  use  of  it  the  Lord 
intended  he  should.' 

"  Many  instances  might  be  mentioned  of  individuals  at  the  easf, 
who  have  exchanged  with  the  '  Agents  of  the  Church  '  their  valua- 
ble possessions  for  these  worthless  land  titles,  and  there  are  cases  of 
suffering,  of  families  reduced  to  beggary,  by  these  villains,  which 
would  cause  tliem,  were  they  otlier  than  the  heartless  wretches  they 
are,  to  relent,  and  desist  from  their  cruel  purpose. 

"  Do  these  Prophets  share  in  the  plunder  .''  If  the  reader  has 
thrown  the  mantle  of  charity  over  them  thus  far,  it  will  require 
enlarging  to  cover  a  pretended  '  revelation  '  upon  matters  and  thino-s 
in  general,  published  in  their  paper  of  June  1,  in  which  —  speak- 
ing of  the  Nauvoo  Boarding  House  —  the  following  passage  occurs  : 
'  Let  my  servant,  Isaac  Galland,  put  stock  in  that  house,  for  I  the 
Lord  loveth  him  for  the  works  he  has  done,  and  will  forgive  all  his 
sins,  therefore  let  him  be  remembered  for  an  interest  in  that  house 
from  generation  to  generation.' 

"  When  it  is  known  that  one  of  these  Prophets  acts  in  the  absence 
of  Galland  as  his  Agent  for  the  sale  of  these  lands,  what  further 
evidence,  we  ask,  is  wanted  of  the  baseness  and  rascality  of  himself 
and  his  confederates.'  "D.  W.  Kilbourn, 

"Edward  Kilbourn. 

"  Montrose,  lown,  October  6,  1841." 


jFVo?n  the  Haiok-Eye  and  Patriot  of  October  14,  1841. 

"  It  is  perhaps  unnecessary  to  say  that  in  these  numbers  it  is  not 
our  purpose  to  enter  into  any  controversy  with  the  '  Mormons ' 
relevant  to  their  religious  belief.  It  is  sulliciently  humiliating  to 
be  compelled,  by  a  strong  sense  of  duty,  to  expose  their  nefarious 
cojiduct.     Confining  ourselves  strictly  to  facts,  we  shall  leave  them 


JOE    SMITH HIS    CLAIMS   AND    CHARACTER.       101 

for  others  to  draw  their  own  inferences.  That  there  may  be  no  mis- 
apprehension as  to  the  individuals  meant,  we  shall  freely  make  use 
of  their  names,  and  should  injustice  be  done  them,  they  can  resort 
to  their  legal  remedy,  assuring  them  that  if  a  single  statement  of 
ours  is  denied,  we  stand  prepared  to  establish  its  truth  by  a  host  of 
witnesses. 

"  In  a  previous  number  we  gave  a  brief  history  of  the  '  Half 
Breed  Reservation,'  and  stated  that  'a  company  of  New  York 
gentlemen  made  extensive  purchases  of  Half  Breed  claims.'  The 
same  gentlemen,  by  their  agents,  were  placed  in  possession  of  the 
barracks  at  Camp  Des  Moines,  on  their  abandonment  by  the  United 
States  dragoons  in  June,  1837,  and  soon  after  caused  a  town  to  be 
surveyed,  to  which  the  name  of  '  Montrose '  was  given,  and  the 
name  of  the  post-office  was  changed,  at  the  request  of  the  citizens, 
from  '  Fort  Des  Moines '  to  '  Montrose.' 

"  In  addition  to  the  numerous  difficulties  surrounding  the  '  Half 
Breed  title,'  an  old  'Spanish  claim'  was  raked  up  from  the  oblivion 
of  a  former  age,  and  a  patent  issued  in  1839  to  the  claimants  under 
it  for  a  tract  of  land  one  mile  square,  including  the  town  site  of 
Montrose. 

"  The  gentlemen  in  possession,  however,  having  '  nine  points  of 
the  law '  in  their  favor,  could,  of  course,  hold  the  premises  against 
the  world,  till  a  final  adjudication  of  the  whole  matter.  This  the 
'  Spanish  claimants '  well  knew,  and  recognized  them  as  being  in 
peaceable  possession  by  instituting  suit  in  our  courts,  which  is  still 
pending. 

"  The  parties  interested  flattered  themselves  that  when  their  con- 
flicting claims  should  be  settled,  all  obstacles  to  the  improvement  of 
the  place,  and  its  becoming — what,  from  the  beauty  of  its  situation, 
it  was  intended  for  by  nature  —  a  large  and  flourishing  town,  would 
be  removed ;  but,  alas !  how  vain  and  delusive  are  allhuman  hopes 
and  expectations.  A  third  claimant  appears  in  the  person  of  Joe 
Smith,  with  a  title  purporting  to  be  Heaven  derived.  Early  one  morn- 
ing in  March  last,  the  quiet  citizens  of  Montrose  were  surprised  by  a 
visit  from  some  of  Joe  Smith's  scullions  from  Nauvoo, —  who  to  all 
appearance  had  but  recently  made  their  escape  from  a  steel  trap, — 
headed  by  Alanson  Ripley,  a  Mormon  Bishop,  who  says  that  '  as  to 
the  technical  niceties  of  the  laic  of  the  land,  he  does  not  intend  to  regard 
them  ;  that  the  kingdom  spoken  of  by  the  prophet  Daniel  has  been  set  up, 
and  that  it  is  necessary  every  kingdom  should  be  governed  by  its  own 
laics.'  With  compass  and  chain  they  strided  through  gates  and  over 
fences  to  the  very  doors  of  the  '  Gentiles,'  and  drove  the  stakes  for  the 
lots  of  a  city  which,  in  extent  at  least,  —  four  miles  square, —  should 
vie  with  some  of  the  largest  cities  of  the  world.  They  heeded  not 
enclosures ;  why  should  they .'  is  not  the  earth  the  Lord's,  and  the 
fulness  thereof?  and  shall  not  his  '  Saints' — of  the  Latter  Day  — 
inherit  and  possess  it  forever  ? 

"  '  The  kingdom  spoken  of  by  the  prophet  Daniel '  having  been 
set  up,  its  '  laws  '  authorized  this  Mormon  Bishop  to  threaten  per- 
sonal violence  to  one  of  the  undersigned,  for  removing  a  stake 
which  had  been  driven  within  the  bounds  of  his  enclosure,  without 

9  • 


102  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

his  consent  and  contrary  to  his  wishes,  and  to  hold  a  club  over  the 
head  of  Mr.  A.  M.  Bissell,  while  one  of  his  'steel  trap'  comrades 
drove  a  stake  within  the  enclosure  of  Mr.  Bissell,  directly  before  his 
door,  after  having  been  forbidden  by  him  to  do  so. 

"  A  few  days  subsequently  to  these  occurrences,  it  was  ascertained 
that  the  exterior  line  of  this  '  four  mile  '  town  had  been  run  by 
order  of  Joe  Smith,  and  a  plot  of  it  made  and  recorded,  to  which  he 
gave  the  name  of  Zarahemla. 

"  And  who  figures  as  proprietor  of  this  renowned  city .'  Joe 
Smith,  to  be  sure,  '  llie  Agent  of  Doctor  Galland,'  —  a  worthy  agent 
for  a  worthy  principal ! 

"  Having  sold  to  his  dupes  a  large  portion  of  the  Half  Breed 
tract,  a  happy  thought  strikes  him  that  they  can  yet  be  *  bled  ; '  he 
orders  them  by  '  revelation  '  to  leave  their  fine  farms  and  move  into 
the  '  city,'  sells  them  lots  and  conveys  them  by  deeds.  There  would 
be  some  excuse  for  these  proceedings  had  they  taken  place  under 
any  color  of  title,  but  he  had  not  the  shadow  of  a  shade  to  found  a 
right  upon.  In  this  view  of  the  case,  was  there  ever  a  more  bare- 
faced attempt  at  swindling  than  this  .'' 

"  On  the  6th  of  April,  at  a  conference  held  at  Nauvoo,  a  Mormon 
leader  publicly  read  a  pretended  '  revelation '  that  the  city  of  Zara- 
hemla should  be  laid  out  and  built  up  by  the  '  Latter  Day  Saints ! ' 
Joe  Smith  then  stated  that,  '  in  accordance  with  this  revelation,'  a 
city  had  been  surveyed,  and  the  Saints  desirous  of  purchasing  lots 
could  now  do  so.  '  The  people  over  there,'  said  he,  'are  very  much 
opposed  to  it,  but  they  must  know  —  if  they  know  any  thing  —  that 
it  would  be  for  their  interest  to  have  5000  inhabitants  come  in  with 
back  loads  of  money ;  why,  I  sometimes  think  they  don't  know 
beans  when  the  bag  is  open ;  they  needn't  be  scared  ;  we  don't  want 
their  improvements  without  paying  them  for  them;  we  expect  to 
pay  them  a  good  price  for  their  possessions,  and  if  that  don't  satisfy 
them,  we'll  have  them  any  hozc' 

"  Are  the  people  of  Iowa  prepared  to  submit  to  such  treatment 
from  an  Impostor  as  vile  as  ever  disgraced  humanity  .•'  Are  we  to 
be  told  that  '  if  you  choose  to  sell,  we  will  buy  your  possessions,  if 
not,  we  will  have  them  any  how ' .'  Is  the  title  to  land  hereafter 
to  be  settled  by  revelation  through  Joe  Smith  ?  Has  the  time  indeed 
arrived  when  '  the  kingdom  is  to  be  set  up  by  forcible  means  if 
necessary,'  and  when  the  riches  of  the  Gentiles  are  to  be  conse- 
crated to  the  true  Israel .'  Such  were  the  teachings  of  the  leaders 
of  this  society  in  Missouri,  and  the  facts  here  stated  show  con- 
clusively that  such  are  their  teachings  and  practices  now. 

"  Have  we  not  some  reason  to  believe  that  their  Missouri  troubles 
were  not  solely  for  righteousness'  sake,  but  that  they  there,  as  here, 
disregarded  all  law,  human  and  divine,  and  by  their  conduct  brought 
down  upon  their  own  heads  the  vengeance  of  an  outraged  and 
insulted  people .'  Robbery  and  theft  with  them  are  called  '  conse- 
crating the  property  of  the  Gentiles.'  Since  the  publication  of  the 
second  number  of  these  articles,  we  were  called  from  home  by 
business,  and  during  our  absence  our  store  was  broken  open  in  the 
early  part  of  the  evening  of  Wednesday,  the  6th  iast.,  before  the 


THE    BOOK    OF    MORMON.  103 

young  man  who  slept  in  the  store  retired  for  the  night,  and  robbed 
of  goods  to  the  amount  of  between  three  and  four  hundred  dollars, 
to  wit: 

42  pieces  dark  prints,  (entire,) 
5  or  6     "         "     satinets, 
1      "      black  Circassian, 
and    a  considerable    quantity   of  cambric    book    muslins,   jaconet, 
sarsenet,  &c.  &c.     This  stands  on  our  list  as  robbery  No.  14. 

"  The  undersigned,  however,  are  not  the  only  sufferers ;  this  our 
'  Gentile  '  neighbors  know  by  sad  experience.  The  four  wheels  of 
a  new  farm  wagon  were  stolen  from  the  yard  of  Harman  Booth, 
Esq.,  a  few  nights  since;  and  the  week  previous,  all  the  tools  of  the 
blacksmith  shop  of  Mr.  S.  H.  Burtis,  with  a  fine  two-horse  wagon, 
were  taken.  Is  it  not  a  singular  fact  that  the  enclosures  of  the 
'  Gentiles,'  and  their  buildings  even,  are  entered,  and  property 
stolen,  while  the  wagons  and  farming  utensils  of  these  '  Latter  Day 
Saints  '  stand  exposed  in  the  open  street,  far  from  any  dwelling,  and 
yet  are  perfectly  secure  .'' 

"  Why  is  it  that  those  who  oppose  this  swindle  are  the  principal, 
if  not  the  only,  sufferers .' 

"D.  W.  KiLBOORN, 

*'  Edward  Kilbourn 
"  MoNTEOsE,  Iowa,  October  13,  1841." 


THE   BOOK  OF   MORMON  — ITS  ORIGIN,  AND 
THE   EVIDENCE   OF   ITS  TRUTH. 

In  this  article,  likewise,  I  shall  extract  from  the  works 
of  Harris  and  Howe,  and  that  of  Professor  J.  B.  Turner, 
of  Illinois  College,  Jacksonville. 

"  Our  first  point  respects  the  character  and  credibility  of  Joseph 
Smith,  Jr.,  who  announces  himself,  on  the  title-page  of  the  first 
edition  of  the  Book  of  Mormon,  as  ^  the  author  and  proprietor' 
of  that  work. 

"We  cannot  conceive  how  any  man  of  common  sense  could  ever 
have  imagined  that  God,  or  any  other  being,  except  Joe  Smith,  was 
either  the  author  or  proprietor  of  such  a  book.  The  only  difficulty 
is,  to  see  how  God  can  be  responsible  for  a  work  of  which  Joseph 
Smith  is  ^  Jiuthor  and  Proprietor ;'  and  one  ground  on  which  such 
a  claim  must  be  sustained,  is  the  admitted  excellence  and  trust- 
worthiness of  Joseph  Smith's  moral  charaster. 


104  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

"  We  admit  that  a  man  may  have  great  faults,  and  still  be  not 
only  worthy  of  credit,  but  an  accredited  and  appropriate  agent  of  the 
Most  High. 

"  All  the  ancient  worthies,  who  spake  as  they  were  moved  by  the 
Holy  Ghost,  were  frail  and  sinful  men,  like  ourselves ;  still  they 
became  the  approved  and  accredited  messengers  of  God. 

"  We  admit,  also,  that  God  often  chooses  '  the  weak  things  of  the 
world  to  confound  the  wise  ; '  and  that  want  of  mere  worldly  talent, 
acquirement,  or  genius,  is  therefore  no  insuperable  objection  to  the 
credibility  of  a  prophet  of  the  Lord. 

"  Still,  we  contend  that  God  never  has,  and  never  will,  choose  a 
character  notoriously  weak,  silly,  profane,  and  rotten  in  all  its  parts, 
to  deliver  a  new  dispensation  of  his  will  to  man. 

"  What,  then,  7eas  the  notorious  char.^cter  of  Joseph  Smith 
BEFORE,  AND  AT  THE  TIME  of  the  Writing  of  the  Book  of  Mormon?" 
—  Mormonism  in  all  Jlges,  by  J.  B.  Turner,  pp.  150,  151. 


"  '  Be  it  known  unto  all  nations,  kindreds,  tongues,  and  peoples, 
unto  whom  this  work  shall  come,  that  we,  through  the  grace  of 
God  the  Father,  and  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  have  seen  the  plates 
which  contain  this  record,  which  is  a  record  of  the  people  of  Nephi, 
and  also  of  the  Lamanites,  his  brethren,  and  also  of  the  people  of 
Jared,  which  came  from  the  tower  of  which  hath  been  spoken ;  and 
we  also  know  that  they  have  been  translated  by  the  gift  and  poiccr 
of  God,  for  his  voice  hath  declared  it  unto  us.  Wherefore  we  know 
of  a  surety  that  the  work  is  true. 

"  '  And  we  also  testify  that  we  have  seen  the  engravings,  which 
are  upon  the  plates,  and  they  have  been  shown  unto  us  by  the  power 
of  God,  and  not  of  man.  And  we  declare,  with  words  of  soberness, 
that  an  angel  of  God  came  from  heaven,  and  he  brought  and  laid 
before  our  eyes,  that  we  beheld  and  saw  the  plates  and  the  engrav- 
ings thereon.  And  we  know  that  it  is  by  the  grace  of  God  the 
Father,  and  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  that  we  beheld,  and  bear  record 
that  these  things  are  true  :  and  it  is  marvellous  in  our  eyes.  Never- 
theless, the  voice  of  the  Lord  commanded  iis  that  we  should  bear 
record  of  it.  Wherefore,  to  be  obedient  unto  the  commandments 
of  God,  we  bear  testimony  to  these  things;  and  we  know  tliat  if 
we  are  faithful  in  Christ  we  shall  rid  our  garments  of  the  blood  of 
all  men,  and  be  found  spotless  before  the  judgment-seat  of  Christ, 
and  shall  dwell  with  him  eternally  in  the  heavens.  And  the  honor 
be  to  the  Father,  and  to  the  Son,  and  to  the  Holy  Ghost,  which  is 
one  God.     Amen. 

"  '  Oliver  Cowdery, 
"  '  David  Whitmer, 
"'Martin  Harris.' 

"  The  reader  is  requested  to  notice  particularly  the  words  in 
Italics.  One  would  indeed  think,  that  if  honest  men  had  heard  and 
seen  such  marvels,  they  ought,  at  least,  themselves  to  have  believed 


THE    BOOK    OF    MORMON.  105 

it  through  life,  and  lived  accordingly,  as  the  apostles  did."  —  Mor- 
monism  in  all  Jgcs,  by  J.  B.  Turner,  pp.  164, 165. 


"  As  regards  the  capacity  of  the  witnesses,  the  reader  is  referred 
to  a  revelation  given,  June,  1829,  through  Joseph  Smith,  to  these 
three  identical  witnesses  the  year  before  they  appended  their  names 
to  the  Book  of  Mormon,  which  we  will  transcribe. 

"'Revelation  to  Oliver  Cowdery,  David  Whitmer,  and  Martin 
Harris,  given  through  Joseph  Smith,  June,  1829,  previous  to  their 
viewing  the  plates  containing  the  Book  of  Mormon.' 

"  1.  ^  Behold,  I  say  unto  you,  that  you  must  rely  upon  my  word  ; 
which  if  you  do  with  full  purpose  of  heart,  you  shall  have  a  view  of 
the  plates,  and  also  of  the  breastplate,  the  sword  of  Laban,  the 
Urim  and  Thummim,  which  were  given  to  the  brother  of  Jared, 
upon  the  mount,  when  he  talked  with  the  Lord  face  to  face,  and  the 
miraculous  directors,  which  were  given  to  Lehi  in  the  wilderness, 
on  the  borders  of  the  Red  Sea;  and  it  is  by  your  faith  yon  shall 
obtain  a  view  of  them,  even  by  that  faith  which  was  had  by  the 
prophets  of  old.' 

"  2.  'And  after  you  have  obtained  faith,  and  have  seen  them  with 
your  eyes,  you  shall  testify  of  them  by  the  power  of  God ;  and  this 
you  shall  do,  that  my  servant,  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  may  not  be  de- 
stroyed, that  I  may  bring  about  my  righteous  purposes  unto  the 
children  of  men  in  this  work,  ^nd  ye  shall  testify  that  you  have  seen 
them,  even  as  my  servant  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  has  seen  them;  for  it 
is  by  my  power  he  hath  seen  them,  and  it  is  because  he  had  faith. 
And  HE  HAS  TRANSLATED  THE  BOOK,  cven  that  part  which  I  have 
commanded  him,  and  as  your  Lord  and  your  God  liveth,  it 

l?TRUE.' 

"  3.  '  Wherefore  you  have  received  the  same  poxcer,  and  the  same 
faith,  and  the  same  gift,  like  unto  him.  And  if  you  do  these  last 
commandments  of  mine,  which  I  have  given  you,  the  gates  of  hell 
shall  not  prevail  against  you;  for  my  grace  is  sufficient  for  you; 
and  you  shall  be  lifted  up  in  the  last  day.  And  I,  Jesus  Christ, 
your  Lord  and  your  God,  have  spoken  it  unto  you,  that  I  might 
bring  about  my  righteous  purposes  unto  the  children  of  men.    Amen.'' 

"  A  revelation  given  to  Martin  Harris,  by  Smith,  March,  1829, 
also  contains  the  identical  words  paraded  forth  to  the  world  in  the 
testimony  of  the  three  witnesses. 

"  Verse  5.  '  And  then  shall  he  (Harris)  say  unto  the  people  of 
this  generation  :  Behold,  I  have  seen  the  things  which  the  Lord 
hath  shown  to  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  and  I  know  of  a  surety  that  they 
are  true,  for  they  have  been  shown  unto  me  by  the  poicer  of  God,  and 
not  of  man,  and  these  are  the  words  he  shall  say,'  &c. 

"  The  voice  of  the  Lord,  then,  it  seems,  which  informed  the  wit- 
nesses that  Smith  had  translated  the  plates,  and  caused  them  to 
know  of  a  surety  that  they  are  true,  and  commanded  them  to  bear 
record  of  it,  in  1830,  in  the  Book  of  Mormon  —  this  same  voice  came 
to  them  through  the  mouth  of  the  Lord's  Prophet,  Smith,  in  March 
and  June  preceding,  that  is,  in  1829. 


106  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

"  They  are  told  in  this  revelation  that  they  should  obtain  a  view 
of  the  plates,  or  see  them,  not  with  their  natural  eyes,  but  with 
those  spiritual  eyes  of  faith  with  which  the  Mormons  see  so  many 
marvels,  viz.,  by  the  '  eye  of  faith,  even  by  that  faith  which  was  had 
by  the  prophets  of  old.'  This  accords  with  the  admissions  of  Martin 
Harris,  who  expressly  stated  that  he  did  not  see  the  plates  with  his 
natural  eyes,  but  with  '  the  eye  of  faith.' 

"  Here,  then,  is  the  '  mighty  power  of  God,  the  angel,  and  voice 
of  tlie  Lord,'  which  revealed  such  marvels  in  1830,  all  concentrated 
in  the  person,  and  pouring  from  the  mouth,  of  the  Lord's  Prophet 
in  1829. 

"  Was  there  ever  impudence  and  stupidity  like  this .''  Why  did 
the  dunce  publish  that  revelation  to  the  world,  especially  since  he 
has  retained  in  his  own  hands,  to  this  day,  hundreds  of  others 
equally  inspired  ?  Was  it  for  the  express  purpose  of  disclosing  his 
own  impudence  and  knavery  ?  Or  was  it  (as  he  himself  once  re- 
marked to  Peter  Ingersoll)  to  see  what  the  'd d  fools  would 

believe '  ? 

"  But  after  all,  these  witnesses  of  inspiration  did  not  testify  to  one 
half  that  Smith's  divinity  commanded  them  to  declare.  Tliey  were 
so  absorbed  in  their  visions  and  golden  dreams  about  the  plates, 
that  they  forgot  to  testify,  as  commanded,  of  the  'breastplate,'  the 
'  sword  of  Laban,'  the  '  Urim  and  Thummim,'  the  miraculous 
•  directors,'  &c.  &c.  Perhaps  this  negligence  was  the  reason  that 
the  said  divinity  gave  them  all  over  to  subsequent  unbelief  and 
hardness  of  heart,  to  work  all  kind  of  abominations,  and  be  'guilty 
of  all  manner  of  debaucheries,'  as  the  Prophet  assures  us  is  the  fact. 

"  Their  capacity  as  witnesses,  then,  to  say  nothing  of  their 
honesty,  amounts  simply  to  this — Joe  Smith  puts  the  words  of  the 
Lord  into  their  mouths,  in  1829,  and  they  repeat  a  part  of  the  same 
to  the  world  in  1830.  Surely,  if  the  Prophet,  in  his  pious  rebuke 
of  liis  witnesses,  had  only  thought  to  have  referred  to  this  trans- 
action, he  might  not  only  have  called  them  '  knaves  and  asses,'  but 
proved  them  such.  Doubtless  he  thought  the  world  would  take  his 
inspired  testimony  to  tlie  fact,  without  logical  proof;  tec  only  supply 
the  proof ,  without  questioning  the  fact." — Mormanism  in  all  AgeSy 
by  J.  B.  Turner,  pp.  172 — 175. 


"  The  sublime  testimony  of  the  second  phalanx  of  eight  witnesses 
is  as  follows  :  — 

"  '  Be  it  known  unto  all  nations,  kindreds,  tongues,  and  people, 
unto  whom  this  work  shall  come,  that  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  author 
and  PROPRIETOR  (  ! !  )  of  this  work,  has  shown  unto  us  the  plates, 
oC which  hath  been  spoken,  which  have  the  appearance  of  gold;  and 
as  many  leaves  as  the  said  Smith  has  translated,  we  did  handle  with 
our  hands,  and  we  saw  the  engravings  thereon,  all  of  which  has  the 
appearance  of  ancient  work  and  of  curious  workmanship.  And  this 
we  bear  record,  with  words  of  soberness,  that  the  said  Smith  has 
shown  unto  us,  for  we  have  seen,  and  hefted,  and  knoic  of  a  surety, 
that  the  said  Smith  has  got  the  plates  of  which  we  have  spoken. 


THE    BOOK    OF    MORMON.  107 

And  we  give  our  names  unto  the  world,  to  witness  unto  tlie 
world  that  which  we  have  seen,  and  we  lie  not,  God  bearin<r  witness 
of  it. 

"  '  Christian  Whitmer, 
"  'Jacob  Whitmer, 
"  'Peter  Whitmer,  Jr., 
"'John  Whitmer, 
"  'Hiram  Page,  brother-in- 
law  of  the  Whitmers, 
"'Joseph  Smith,  Sen., 
"  '  Hyrum  Smith, 
"  'Samuel  H.  Smith.' 

"  By  turning  to  the  same  revelation,  quoted  above,  the  reader  will 
again  see  how  this  second  platoon  of  witnesses  '  hefted,'  and  '  hneio 
of  a  surety,'  that  the  said  Smith  had  the  plates  '  uf  which  hath  been 
spoken.'  It  is  Joe  Smith,  thought,  style,  and  all,  from  a  to  izzard. 
And  what  does  it  all  prove  ?  First,  that  Joe  Smith  is  author  and 
proprietor  of  the  Book  of  Mormon,  as  all  the  world  knows.  Second, 
that  they  saw  and  '  hefted '  some  plates  shown  them  by  Smith. 
What  if  they  did  ?  How  did  they  know  what  or  how  many  plates 
Smith  had  translated,  when,  by  their  own  confession,  they  could 
not  read  a  word  on  any  of  them  .'  Joe  Smith  told  them  so. 
And  this  is  all  their  testimony  amounts  to,  on  the  face  of  it,  by  their 
own  showing.  We  are  not  only  willing,  but  anxious  to  admit  that 
Smith  did  show  some  plates,  of  some  sort ;  and  that  they  actually 
testify  to  the  truth,  so  far  as  they  were  capable  of  knowing  it,  we 
are  not  only  willing,  but  anxious  to  admit,  in  order  to  keep  up  a 
just  and  charitable  equilibrium  between  tlie  knaves  and  fools,  in 
Mormonism  and  the  world  at  large.  Three  to  eight  is  at  once  a 
happy  and  reasonable  proportion.  We  will  not  disturb  it.  It  is 
gratifying  to  human  philanthropy  to  be  able  to  account  for  all  the 
facts  in  the  case  by  tliis  charitable  solution.     . 

"  Three  of  these  witnesses,  we  are  boastingly  told,  died  in  the 
faith  ;  and  we  should  naturally  have  expected  that  any  man  who 
could  have  been  induced  to  set  his  name  to  such  a  silly  paper  as 
that  is,  would  have  died  in  almost  any  faith.  The  only  thing  that 
looks  strange  about  it  is,  that  all  the  rest,  except  the  brothers  of  the 
Prophet,  have  had  sense  enough  to  apostatize  and  leave  tiie  Church, 
(with  proper  discipline,  of  course.)  Perhaps  it  is  well  for  the  world, 
and  well  for  these  three,  that  they  did  not  live  to  go  the  same  v^ay 
with  all  the  rest,  and  fall  with  Harris  into  '  all  manner  of  abom- 
inations.' 

"  The  whole,  then,  of  this  mighty  array  of  bombast,  nonsense, 
and  blasphemy,  resolves  itself  into  this  :  — 

"  Joe  Smith  is  not  only  author  and  proprietor  of  the  Book 
of  Mormon,  as  both  he  and  his  witnesses  declare,  but  he  is  also 
'  power  of  God,'  'angel,'  'voice,'  'faith,'  'eyes,'  ears  and  hands  for 
the  witnesses  themselves ;  that  is,  all  the  evidence  the  world  has 
for  the  Book  of  Mormon,  after  all  this  bluster,  is  '■Juc  Smith's  say 
so.'     He  says  that  God  instructs  him,  he  instructs  the  witnesses, 


108  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

and  the  witnesses  instruct  the  world.  Q^iiod  crat  demonstrandum 
David  Whitmer  reported  that  the  angel,  which  appeared  unto  him 
'was  lil^e  a  inan  in  gray  clothes,  having  his  tiiroat  cut.'  This  was 
probably  a  prophetic  vision,  indicating  the  true  desert  of  the  real 
author. 

"  111  further  elucidation  of  what  Mormons  mean  by  the  '  power  of 
God,'  the  reader  is  referred  to  the  Book  of  Mormon,  pp.  420,  421 ; 
the  Book  of  Covenants,  p.  102,  v.  12 — 173,  v.  5.  It  will  there  be 
seen  that  this  voice  and  power  of  God  is  a  small  affair,  which  every 
enthusiast  can  have,  and  see  at  any  time  he  pleases,  especially  if 
Smith  is  at  hand. 

"  Since,  then,  we  are  obliged,  after  all,  to  take  Joe's  word,  simply, 
for  his  new  Bible,  it  may  be  interesting  to  the  world  to  know  how 
he  was  enabled  to  translate  it,  out  of  the  Reformed  Egyptian,  into 
'  j)atcnt  English.'  He  has  told  us  that  he  looked  into  his  stone 
spectacles,  and  saw  the  words  pass  before  his  mind.  But  he  informs 
us  more  explicitly  still,  in  the  famous  book  of  Revelations  and 
Covenants,  in  wiiich,  after  all,  it  must  be  candidly  admitted,  that 
the  Lord  has  clearly  revealed  some  things  —  at  least  one,  and  that 

is    the    KNAVERY    OF    JoE    SmITH. 

"  If  the  reader  will  turn  to  the  revelation  given  by  Smith  to  O. 
Cowdery,  in  Harmony,  Pennsylvania,  April,  1829,  while  translating 
the  Gold  Bible,  (see  Book  of  Covenants,  110,)  he  will  perceive 
that  Oliver's  faith  had  begun  to  fail.  He  had  got  tired  of  writing 
the  gibberish  of  Smith,  and  needed  a  word  of  exhortation  and  en- 
couragement. Smith's  divinity  gives  him  both,  of  course,  and  also, 
to  pacify  him,  grants  him  the  gift  to  translate,  '  even  as  my  servant 
Joseph,'  (verse  11.)  At  this,  it  appears  that  Oliver  took  courage, 
put  on  the  spectacles,  planted  himself  in  due  order,  before  the  mys- 
tic plates,  and  looked  with  all  his  migjit,  but  saw  nothing.  Oliver, 
of  course,  becomes  more  uneasy  and  intractable  than  ever.  He 
complains  more  than  before,  and  with  more  reason  too.  And  now, 
for  a  new  revelation,  of  the  same  date,  pat  upon  the  other,  which 
contained  the  grant  of  the  gift  to  Oliver  to  translate. 

"  We  will  quote  a  verse  or  two  of  this  revelation  from  Smith's 
'  unchanging  Deity.'  Verse  2,  page  1G2 :  '  Be  patient,  my  son  Oli- 
ver, for  it  is  wisdom  in  me,  and  it  is  not  expedient  that  you  should 
translate  at  this  present  time.  Behold,  the  work  you  are  called  to  do 
is  to  trritefor  m!j  servant  Joseph.  And  behold,  it  is  because  you  did 
not  continue,  as  you  commenced,  when  you  began  to  translate,  that 
I  have  taken  away  this  privilege  from  you.  Do  not  murmur,  my 
son,  for  it  is  wisdom  in  me  that  I  have  dealt  with  you  after  this 
manner.'     (Undoubtedly !  !) 

"  Verse  3 :  '  Behold,  you  have  not  understood.  You  have  sup- 
posed that  I  would  give  it  tinto  you,  when  yoii  took  no  thought  save 
it  was  to  ask  me.  But  behold,  I  say  unto  you.  You  must  study  it 
OUT  i\  Youii  OWN  MIND.  ( !  )  Tlieti  you  must  ask  me  if  it  be  right ; 
and  if  it  is  right,  I  will  cause  that  your  bosom  sii.\ll  burn  within 
you.  THEREFORE  (!!)  you  shall  feel  that  it  is  right.  But 
if  it  is  not  right,  you  shall  have  no  such  feelings  ;  but  yon  shall 
have  a  stupor  of  thought,  that  shall  cause  you  to  forget  the  thing 


THE  BOOK  OF  MORMON.  109 

which  is  icrong.    THEREFORE  ( ! ! )  you  cannot  write  that  which 
is  sacred,  save  it  be  given  you  from  me.'     '^d  ed. 

"  Here,  in  the  first  place,  we  see  that  Smith's  Divinity  found  it 
expedient  '  to  deviate  a  little,'  and  retract  the  divinity-given  gift  con- 
ferred the  same  day. 

*•  In  the  second,  we  have  his  patent  divine  prescription  for  writing 
things  sacred,  in  detail ;  and,  of  course,  the  method  which  Smitii 
has  followed  in  translating  hia  Bible,  and  giving  his  other  revelations 
to  the  world.  He  '  studied  it  out  in  his  own  mind,'  and  when  lie 
got  it  right,  '  his  bosom  burned,'  of  course.  With  this  patent  recipe 
before  him,  we  see  not  why  any  man  might  not  translate,  or  give 
revelations,  as  well  as  Smith,  unless  he  was  afflicted  with  that  un- 
accountable stupor  of  thought,  which  seems  to  unfit  all  other  Mormons 
for  the  work,  except  Smitli.  Perhaps,  if  brother  Cowdery  should  try 
his  hand  at  it  now,  since  he  has  had  wit  enough  to  leave  the  Mor- 
mons, he  would  succeed  in  raising  the  needful  heat  better  than 
before. 

"  Those  in  other  churches,  who  are  in  the  habit  of  practising  upon 
the  same  principle,  would  do  well  to  commit  Smith's  rule  to  memo- 
ry, since  it  accurately  describes  the  process  of  securing  miraculous 
confirmations  of  any  known  or  imagined  truth." 

Mormonism  in  all  Ages,  by  J.  B.  Turner,  pp.  177 — 181. 


From  Mormonism  Portrayed,  by  Rev.  Wm.  Harris. 

"  The  Book  of  Mormon,  which  may  be  said  to  be  at  the  founda- 
tion of  Mormonism,  was  first  published  in  the  year  183'J.  Since 
that  period,  its  believers  and  advocates  have  propagated  its  doctrines 
and  absurdities,  with  a  zeal  worthy  of  a  better  cause.  Through 
every  State  of  the  Union,  and  in  Canada,  the  Apostles  of  this  wild 
delusion  have  disseminated  its  principles,  and  duped  hundreds  to 
believe  it  true  —  they  have  crossed  the  ocean,  and,  in  England,  if 
their  own  accounts  may  be  credited,  have  made  thousands  of  con- 
verts ;  and  recently  some  of  their  missionaries  have  even  been  sent 
to  Palestine.  Such  strenuous  exertions  having  been,  and  still  being 
made,  to  propagate  the  doctrines  of  this  book,  and  such  fruits  having 
already  appeared  from  the  labors  of  its  friends,  it  becomes  a  matter 
of  some  interest,  to  investigate  its  origin  and  claims. 

"  The  Book  of  Mormon  purports  to  be  the  record,  or  histor}',  of  a 
certain  people,  who  inhabited  America,  previous  to  its  discovery  by 
Columbus.  This  people,  according  to  it,  were  the  descendants  of 
one  Lehi,  who  crossed  the  ocean,  from  the  eastern  continent,  to 
this.  Their  history  and  records,  containing  prophecies  and  reve- 
lations, were  engraven,  by  the  command  of  God,  on  small  plates, 
and  deposited  in  the  hill  Comora,  v/hich  appears  to  be  situated  in 
Western  New  York.  Thus  was  preserved  an  account  of  this  race, 
(together  with  their  religious  creed,)  up  to  the  period  when  the  de- 
scendants of  Laman,  Lemuel,  and  Sam,  who  were  the  three  eldest 
sons  of  Lehi,  arose  and  destroyed  the  descendants  of  Nephi,  who 
was  the  youngest  son.  From  this  period,  the  descendants  of  the 
eldest  sons  '  dwindled  in  unbelief,'  and  '  became  a  dark,  loathsome, 
and  filthy  people'  The  last-mentioned  are  our  present  Indians. 
10 


110  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

"  The  plates  above  mentioned  remained  in  tlieir  depository  until 
about  the  year  ]ri25,  when,  as  the  Mormons  say,  they  were  found 
by  Joseph  Sniitli,  Jr.,  wlio  was  directed  in  the  discovery  by  the 
Angel  of  tile  Lord.  On  these  plates  were  certain  hieroglyphics,  said 
to  be  of  the  Egyptian  cliaracter,  wliich  Smith,  by  the  direction  of 
God,  being  instructed  by  inspiration,  as  to  their  meaning,  proceeded 
to  translate.  This  translation  is  the  work  which  I  propose  now  to 
examine. 

"  It  will  be  here  proper  to  remark,  that  a  narrative  so  extraordinary 
as  that  contained  in  the  Book  of  Mormon,  translated  from  hiero- 
gl3'phics,  of  which  even  the  most  learned  have  but  a  limited  knowl- 
edge, and  that,  too,  by  au  ignorant  youth,  wlio  pretended  to  no  other 
knowledge  of  the  characters,  than  what  he  derived  from  inspiration, 
requires  more  than  ordinary  evidence  to  substantiate  it.  It  will  be 
m}'  purpose  therefore,  in  the  remainder  of  this  chapter,  to  inquire 
into  tlie  nature  and  degree  of  testimony  which  has  been  given  to 
the  world,  to  substantiate  the  claims  of  this  extraordinary  book. 

"  In  the  first  place,  the  existence  of  the  plates  themselves  has,  ever 
since  their  alleged  discovery,  been  in  dispute.  To  this  point  it  would 
be  extremely  easy  to  give  some  proof,  by  making  an  exhibition  of 
them  to  the  world.  If  they  are  so  ancient  as  tliey  are  claimed  to 
be,  and  designed  for  the  purpose  of  transmitting  the  history  of  a 
people,  and  if  they  have  laid  for  ages,  deposited  in  the  earth,  their 
appearance  would  certainly  indicate  the  fact.  What  evidence,  then, 
have  we  of  the  existence  of  these  plates .-'  Why,  none  other  than 
the  mere  dictum  of  Smith,  himself,  and  the  certificates  of  eleven  oth- 
er individuals,  who  say  that  tliey  have  seen  them ;  and  upon  this 
testimony  we  are  required  to  believe  this  most  extraordinary  narra- 
tive, and  are  threatened  with  eternal  punishment  for  not  believing  it. 

"  jVow,  even  admitting,  for  the  sake  of  argument,  that  these  wit- 
nesses are  all  honest  and  credible  men,  yet  what  would  be  easier 
than  for  Smitli  to  deceive  them  .'  Could  he  not  easily  procure  plates 
to  be  made,  and  inscribe  thereon  a  set  of  characters,  no  matter 
what,  and  then  exhibit  them  to  his  intended  witnesses  as  genuine .' 
What  would  be  easier  tlian  thus  to  impose  on  tlicir  credulity  and 
weakness  .'  And  if  it  were  necessary  to  give  them  the  appearance 
of  antiquity,  a  chemical  process  could  easily  effect  the  matter. 
But  I  do  not  admit  that  these  witnesses  were  honest ;  for  six  of 
them,  after  having  made  the  attestation  to  the  world  that  they  had 
seen  the  plates,  left  the  Church ;  thus  contradicting  that  to  which 
they  had  certified.  And  one  of  these  witnesses,  Martin  Harris, 
v/ho  is  frequently  mentioned  in  the  Book  of  Covenants — who  was 
a  Higli  Priest  of  the  Cliurch  —  who  was  one  of  the  most  infatuated 
of  Smitli's  followers — who  even  gave  his  property  in  order  to  pro- 
cure the  publication  of  the  Book  of  Mormon,  having  afterwards  left 
tlie  Church,  Smith,  in  speaking  of  him  in  connection  witli  others, 
said  tliat  they  were  so  f'r  beneath  contempt,  tliat  a  notice  of  them 
Avould  be  too  great  a  sacrifice  for  a  gentleman  to  make. 

"  But  what  reason  does  Smith  give  for  not  exhibiting  the  plates  to 
the  world  ?  The  only  reason  that  I  have  ever  heard,  is,  that  God 
has  forbidden  him ;  but  at  the  same  time  directed  that  he  should 


THE    BOOK    OF    MORMON.  1 ] 1 

show  them  to  the  eleven  witnesses  above  spoken  of.  Pvow,  the 
foreknowledge  of  God  has  never  been  denied ;  and  is  it  to  be  pre- 
sumed that  the  Almighty  would  direct  Smith  to  exhibit  tJie  plates  to 
men  whom  he  knew  would  prove  traitors  ?  and  more  especially  to 
so  contemptible  a  man  as  Harris  is  described  to  be  ?  If  these  plates 
are  of  divine  origin,  the  witnesses  to  them  must  be  considered  as 
tlie  witnesses  of  God  ;  but  what  idea  could  be  more  ridiculous,  than 
to  suppose  that  six,  out  of  eleven  witnesses,  chosen  by  the  Almiglity, 
for  his  own  purpose,  should  prove  recreant  ?  Yet  this  is  not  more 
absurd,  than  to  suppose  God  would  require  mankind  to  believe  a 
matter  so  out  of  the  ordinary  course  of  nature,  as  are  many  things 
recorded  in  the  Book  of  Mormon,  from  the  simple  attestation  of 
eleven  men.  How  difterent,  in  this  respect,  is  Mormonism  from 
Christianity  !  Did  Christ  exhibit  the  evidence  of  his  Divinity  be- 
fore his  twelve  apostles  only.'  No!  nearly  every  miracle  that  is 
recorded  was  performed  in  the  presence  of  great  multitudes.  Did 
he  ask  mankind  to  believe  that  his  mission  was  from  above,  merely 
because  his  twelve  apostles  said  that  they  had  evidence  of  it.-'  No  ! 
but  he  exhibited  the  proof  wherever  he  went,  and  gave  such  clear 
and  incontestable  evidence  of  its  nature,  even  in  the  presence  of  his 
enemies,  that  they  were  every  where  confounded.  Now,  is  it  prob- 
able tliat  God,  in  one  age  of  the  world,  should  give  such  convincing 
proof  of  the  truth  of  his  word,  and  in  another  age,  require  us  to  be- 
lieve on  the  mere  ipse  dixit  of  but  eleven  men,  and  the  moral  char- 
acters of  these  equivocal,  to  say  the  best  of  them,  and  according  to 
the  general  evidence,  very  bad  .'' 

"  But  admitting  the  plates  to  exist,  and  that  they  have  certain 
hieroglyphics  inscribed  upon  them,  yet  how  are  we  to  know  that 
the  Book  of  Mormon  is  a  correct  translation  ?  Smith,  at  the  time 
of  the  alleged  translation,  was  a  young  man,  totally  ignorant  of  any 
language,  except  his  mother  tongue.  There  is  no  way,  therefore, 
in  which  he  could  have  arrived  at  a  correct  translation  of  the  plates, 
unless  by  the  aid  of  divine  inspiration  :  indeed,  the  first  certificate 
attached  to  the  Book  of  JVIormon,  avers  that  it  was  translated  '  by 
the  gift  and  power  of  God.'  Now,  the  first  evidence  to  show  that 
they  really  were  translated  by  the  '  gift  and  power  of  God,'  would 
be  to  show  that  the  book  is  a  correct  translation  of  the  plates. 
This  could  easily  be  done,  by  submitting  the  plates  to  the  inspec- 
tion of  learned  men,  and  procuring  their  attestation  to  the  fact. 
Has  this  ever  been  done  .'  Not  one  of  the  men  to  whom  the  plates 
were  alleged  to  have  been  shown,  possessed  any  knowledge  of  the 
language  in  which  they  were  said  to  have  been  written.  How, 
then,  could  they  tell  whether  the  book  was  a  correct  translation  .' 
Why,  only  by  the  same  means  that  Smith  professed  to  translate  it, 
—  namely,  by  inspiration.  Indeed,  Oliver  Cowdery,  David  Whit- 
mer,  and  Martin  Harris,  in  the  first  certificate  attached  to  the  Book 
of  Mormon,  claim  to  be  inspired.  Speaking  of  the  translation,  tliey 
say,  '  It  is  marvellous  in  our  eyes ;  nevertheless,  the  voice  of  the 
Lord  commanded  us  that  ice  should  hear  record  of  it.'  Here  it  will 
be  observed,  that  there  are  a  number  of  men,  all  professing  to  be 
inspired,  and  they  are  the  only  evidence  of  each  other's  inspiration. 


112  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

Does  this  not  look  like  collusion  ?  Smith  says, '  1  am  inspired,'  and 
these  men  say,  '  We  believe  it,  for  we  have  the  evidence  of  its 
truth,  by  inspiration.'  This  is  something  like  thieves  proving  each 
otlier  honest  men. 

"  A  further  remark  here.  There  are  two  certificates  attached  to 
the  Book  of  Mormon ;  the  second  of  which  is  signed  by  eight  wit- 
nesses. Now,  this  certificate  does  not  say  one  word  about  the  book 
being  translated  through  the  aid  of  inspiration ;  it  simply  avers  that 
Smith  is  the  translator.  The  only  evidence,  therefore,  which  we 
have  that  Smith  translated  the  book  by  the  aid  of  inspiration,  is  the 
first  certificate,  signed  by  Martin  Harris,  Oliver  Cowdery,  and  Da- 
vid Whitmer.  Now,  as  to  Harris,  by  Smith's  own  showing,  he  is 
too  contemptible  to  be  noticed  by  a  gentleman;  therefore  we  will 
lay  him  on  the  shelf.  The  other  two,  Cowdery  and  Whitmer,  left 
the  Church,  renounced  Mormonism,  and  contradicted  wliat  they  had 
certified.  Here,  then,  are  but  three  witnesses  on  all  the  Mormon 
records,  to  prove  Smith's  inspiration,  one  of  which  is  too  contempti- 
ble to  notice,  and  tlie  others  have  discredited  themselves. 

"  Some  of  the  Mormons  have  said  (I  know  not  whether  it  comes 
from  the  heads  of  the  Church)  that  a  copy  of  the  plates  was  pre- 
sented to  Professor  Anlhon,  a  gentleman  standing  in  the  first  rank 
as  a  classical  scholar,  and  he  attested  to  the  faithfulness  of  the  trans- 
lation of  the  Book  of  Mormon.  Now,  let  us  hear  what  the  Professor 
himself  has  to  say  of  this  matter.  In  a  letter  recently  written  by 
him  to  the  Rev.  T.  W.  Coit,  of  New  Rochelle,  N.  Y.,  he  professes 
to  make  a  plain  statement  of  all  he  knows  of  the  Mormons.  In  this 
letter  he  says,  — 

'^ '  Many  years  ago,  —  the  precise  date  I  do  not  now  recollect,  —  a 
plain-looking  countryman  called  upon  me  with  a  letter  from  Dr.  Sam- 
uel L.  Mitchell,  requesting  me  to  examine,  and  give  my  opinion  upon 
a  certain  paper,  marked  with  various  characters,  which  the  Doctor 
confessed  he  could  not  decipher,  and  which  the  bearer  of  the  note 
was  very  anxious  to  have  explained.  A  very  brief  examination  of 
the  paper,  convinced  me  that  it  was  a  mere  hoax,  and  a  very  clumsy 
-one  too.  The  characters  were  arranged  in  columns,  like  the  Chinese 
mode  of  writing,  and  presented  the  most  singular  medley  that  I  had 
ever  beheld.  Greek,  Hebrew,  and  all  sorts  of  letters,  more  or  less 
distorted,  either  through  unskilfulness  or  from  actual  design,  were 
intermingled  with  sundry  delineations  of  half  moons,  stars,  and  other 
natural  objects,  and  the  whole  ended  in  a  rude  representation  of  the 
Mexican  zodiac.  The  conclusion  was  irresistible,  that  some  cun- 
ning fellow  had  prepared  the  paper  in  question  for  the  purpose  of 
imposing  upon  the  countryman  who  brought  it,  and  I  told  the  man  so 
without  any  hesitation.  "He  then  proceeded  to  give  me  the  history 
of  the  whole  affair,  which  convinced  me  that  he  had  fallen  into  the 
hands  of  some  sharper,  while  it  left  me  in  great  astonishment  at  his 
own  simplicity.' 

'  "  He  also  states  that  he  gave  his  opinion  in  writing  to  this  man, 
that '  the  marks  on  the  paper  appeared  to  be  merely  an  imitation  of 
various  alphabetic  characters  and  had  no  meaning  at  all  connected 
with  them.' 


THE    BOOK    OF    MORMON.  113 

The  plain-looking  countryman  referred  to,  the  Professor  states, 
he  believes  to  have  been  no  other  than  the  Prophet  Smith  himself; 
but  the  probability  is,  that  it  was  Martin  Harris.  Here,  then,  is  a  ' 
beautiful  illustration  of  what  Mornionism  really  is  —  a  mere  hoax, 
designed  to  take  advantage  of  tlie  gullibility  of  mankind,  and  thus  to 
aggrandize  its  author  and  his  coadjutors. 

"  The  only  evidence  that  has  ever  been  received  to  prove  the 
inspiration  of  an  individual,  is  this,  —  that  he  possessed  the  power  to 
work  miracles ;  in  other  words,  to  do  sonie  act  impossible,  according 
to  the  established  laws  of  nature.  Now,  has  Smith  ever  performed 
an  act  of  this  description  ?  True,  if  he  establishes  the  fact  incon- 
trovertibly,  that  he  discovered  plates  on  which  were  engraved  cer- 
tain cliaracters  in  the  Egyptian,  or  any  other  ancient  language, 
and  that  he,  being  unlettered,  made  a  correct  translation  of  tJiem, — 
this  indeed  would  be  a  miracle.  But  neither  of  these  facts  is  es- 
tablished; not  even  by  the  slightest  testimony.  P"'or  the  certificates 
of  the  witnesses  do  not  state  where,  or  how,  Smith  obtained  the 
plates,  but  simply  that  an  Angel  came  from  heaven,  and  brought, 
and  laid  the  plates  before  their  (the  witnesses')  eyes,  that  they  '  be- 
held and  saw  the  plates,  and  the  engravings  thereon.'  There  is, 
then,  no  evidence  of  where  Smith  obtained  the  plates,  except  his 
own  dicta;  neither  is  there  any  evidence  of  the  nature  of  the  char- 
acters alleged  to  have  been  written  thereon. 

"  As  for  any  other  miracles,  although  I  have  heard  of  Smith's 
having  performed  such,  yet,  until  he  appears  before  a  multitude, 
every  opportunity  being  given  for  detecting  fraud,  and  performs  an 
act  that  could  not  be  done  without  suspending  the  ordinary  laws  of 
nature,  no  credence  can  be  given  to  the  statements  of  bigoted  and 
interested  persons.  His  miracles  must  be  performed  as  were  those 
of  Christ,  —  in  the  presence  of  thousands,  and  before  the  eyes  of  his 
enemies.  Can  he  heal  the  sick  .'  if  so,  why,  when  he  is  himself 
sick,  does  he  take  ordinary  medicines  for  relief.''  Can  he  prevent 
death  .''  Why,  then,  are  his  nearest  relations  and  most  useful  friends 
suffered  to  die  in  the  vigor  of  manhood  ? 

"  I  have  now  e.vamined  tlie  sum  total  of  the  external  evidence 
which  has  ever  been  given  to  prove  the  truth  of  th'e  Book  of  Mor- 
mon. True,  numerous  passages  of  Scripture  are  quoted,  and,  by 
forced  constructions,  are  made  to  have  reference  to  this  book;  but 
a  fair  interpretation  will  always  show  the  fallacy  of  all  arguments 
that  can  be  drawn  from  this  source.  With  tlie  same  propriety  that 
quotations  are  made  to  piove  the  truth  of  Mornionism,  they  can  be 
made  to  prove  it  a  h.orn  of  the  great  beast  referred  to  by  John. 
Equally  futile  with  the  last,  is  the  attempt  of  some  to  corroborate 
the  narrative  of  the  book,  by  producing  facts  to  prove  that  this 
continent  was  once  inhabited  by  a  civilized  race.  This  only  shows 
that  the  author  of  the  book  had  a  knowledge  of  that  fact,  and  wrote 
it  in  reference  thereto. 

"  I  cannot  better  close  this  chapter,  than  by  giving  an  extract 
from  a  revelation  to  Smith,  which  will  show  what  idea  he  has  of 
inspiration.  It  appears  that  Oliver  Cowdery,  who  was  appointed 
to  assist  Smith  in  translating  the  plates,  finding  that  he   was  but 

10* 


114  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

little  aided  by  inspiration,  complained  of  the  fact;  and  Smith,  for  his 
encouragement,  received  the  followinsr  revelation,  which  will  be 
found  in  tlie  Booli  of  Covenants,  page  162,  and  reads  thus:  — '  Be 
patient,  my  son,  lor  it  is  wisdom  in  me,  and  it  is  not  expedient  tliat 
you  should  translate  at  this  present  time.  Behold,  the  work  which 
you  are  called  to  do,  is  to  write  for  my  servant  Joseph,  and  behold, 
it  is  because  that  you  did  not  continue  as  you  conmienced,  when  you 
began  to  translate,  that  I  have  taken  away  tliis  privilege  from  you; 
do  not  murmur,  nsy  son,  for  it  is  wisdoni  in  me,  that  I  have  dealt 
with  you  after  tliis  manner.  Behold,  you  have  not  understood  ; 
you  have  supposed  that  I  would  give  it  unto  you,  when  you  took  no 
thought,  save  it  was  to  ask  me  ;  but,  behold,  I  say  unto  you,  that 
you  must  stitdy  it  out  in  ijour  ovm  mind;  then  you  must  ask  me  if  it  he 
right;  and  if  it  be  right,  I  will  cause  that  your  bosom  shall  burn 
within  you;  therefore  you  shall  feel  that  it  is  right;  but  if  it  be  not 
riffht,  you  shall  have  no  such  feelings;  but  you  shall  have  a  stupor 
of  thought  that  shall  cause  you  to  forget  the  thing  which  is  wrong.' 
Here  is  inspiration,  with  a  vengeance  !  '  Study  it  out  in  your  own 
mind  ! '  no  matter  what  it  is  1  make  the  most  plausible  story  tliat  you 
can,  and  then,  ah  !  then,  you  must  come  and  '  ask  me  if  it  be  right.' 
Is  this  any  thing  like  to  the  inspiration  spoken  of  in  tlie  Bible  .'' 
Does  it  bear  any  analogy  to  the  voice  of  God  speaking  to  Abraham, 
when  the  burning  coals,  »fcc.,  passed  between  the  parts  of  the  sacri- 
fice, at  eventide  ;  or  to  the  burning  bush  of  Moses ;  or  the  terrific 
grandeur  of  Sinai,  when,  in  the  presence  of  millions,  the  mountain 
shook,  and  burned  with  fire,  and  the  trumpet  waxed  louder  and 
louder,  until  Moses  said,  '  I  exceedingly  fear  and  quake  '  ? 

"  Now,  it  will  here  be  observed,  that  the  translators  of  the  Book 
of  Mormon,  by  their  own  showing,  were  not  under  inspiration  at  the 
time  of  Vv'riting  the  translations.  How,  then,  in  the  name  of  com- 
mon sense,  would  a  set  of  unlettered  men,  who  could  scarcely  write 
their  own  language,  and  who  were  totally  innocent  of  a  knowledge 
of  any  other,  proceed  to  make  a  translation  of  Egyptian  hieroglyph- 
ics ?  We  are  told  that  they  must  'study  it  out  in  their  own  minds,' 
without  assistance  from  God  ;  and  after  they  had  imagined  what  the 
characters  meant,  then  the  inspiration  should  come.  Here,  then,  is 
direct  evidence  from  Smith  himself  of  what  tlie  Book  of  Mormon 
really  is  —  namely,  a  mere  fiction,  conjured  up  from  the  brains  of 
Smith,  or  his  coadjutors,  and  designed  for  nothing  else  than  to  gull 
mankind,  and  to  aggrandize  themselves. 

"  One  remark  further.  We  are  asked,  if  Smith  was  an  unlettered 
youth,  is  not  the  fact  of  his  producing  a  work  such  as  the  Book  of 
Mormon,  a  proof  of  inspiration.  I  answer,  that  the  style  and  matter 
of  the  book  is  nothing  superior;  but  admitting  that  it  was  more  than 
a  youth  like  Smith  could  produce,  is  it  not  well  known  that  he  liad 
coadjutors  of  acknowledged  talents  —  fully  ample  to  produce  such  a 
work.''  more  especially  as,  in  style  and  mutter,  it  is  written  in  imita- 
tion of  the  Scriptures.'  Some  have  intimated,  liowever,  that  the 
book  was  obtained  by  Smith  surreptitiously,  from  the  executors  of  a 
man  who  had  written  it  as  a  religious  ronmnce,  and  altered  it  to  suit 
his  own  purposes." 

Mormonism  Portrayed,  by  IVilliam  Harris,  pp.  4 — 10. 


THE    BOOK    OF    MORMON.  115 

lYom  Mormonism  Unveiled,  by  E.  D.  Howe,  pp.  278 — 290. 

"  We  think  that  facts  and  data  have  been  elicited,  sufficient,  at 
least,  to  raise  a  strong  presumption  that  the  leading  features  of  the 
'  Gold  Bible  '  were  first  conceived  and  concocted  by  one  Solomon 
Spalui.ng,  while  a  resident  of  Conneaut,  Ashtabula  county,  Ohio. 
It  is  admitted  by  our  soundest  jurists,  that  a  train  of  circumstances 
may  often  lead  the  mind  to  a  more  satisfactory  and  unerring  conclu- 
sion, than  positive  testimony,  unsupported  by  circumstantial  evi- 
dence—  for  the  plain  reason,  that  the  one  species  of  testimony  is 
more  prone  to  falsehood  than  the  other.  But  we  proceed  with  our 
testimony. 

"The  first  witness  is  INIr.  Jolin  Spalding,  a  brother  of  Solomon, 
now  a  resident  of  Crawford  county.  Pa.,  who  says, — 

"  Solomon   Spalding  was  born  in  Ashford,  Conn.,  in  1761,  and  in 
early  life  contracted  a  taste  for  literary  pursuits.     After  he  left  school, 
he  entered  Plainfield  Academy,  where  he  made  great  proficiency  in 
study,  and  excelled   most  of  his  classmates.     He  next  commenced 
the   study   of  law,  in   Windham  county,  in  which  he  made  little 
progress,  having  in  the  mean  time  turned  his  attention  to  religious 
subjects.     He  soon  after  entered  Dartmouth  College,  with  the  inten- 
tion of  qualifying  himself  for  the  ministry,  where  he  obtained  the  de- 
gree of  A.  M.,  and  was  afterwards  regularly  ordained.    After  preach- 
ing three  or  four  years,  he  gave  it  up,  removed  to   Cherry  Valley, 
N.  Y.,  and  commenced  the  mercantile  business,  in  company  with  his 
brother  Josiah.     In  a  few  years  he  failed  in  business,  and  in  the 
year  1809  removed  to  Conneaut,  in  Ohio.     The  year  following,  I  re- 
moved to  Ohio,  and  found  him  engaged  in  building  a  forge.     I  made 
him  a  visit  in  about  three  years  after,  and  found  that  he  had  failed, 
and  was  considerably  involved  in  debt.     He  then  told  me  he  had 
been  writing  a  book,  which  he  intended  to  have  printed,  the  avails 
of  which  he  thought  would   enable  him  to  pay  all  his  debts.     The 
book  was  entitled  the  '  Manuscript  Found,'  of  which  he  read  to  me 
many  passages.     It  was  an  historical  romance  of  the  first  settlers  of 
America,  endeavoring  to  show  that  the  American  Indians  are  the  de- 
scendants of  the  Jews,  or  tlie  lost  tribes.     It  gave  a  detailed  account 
of  their  journey  from  Jerusalem,  by  land  and  sea,  till  they  arrived  in 
America,  under  the  command  of  NEPHI  and  LEHI.     They  after- 
wards had  quarrels  and  contentions,  and  separated  into  two  distinct 
nations,  one  of  which  he  denominated  Nephites,  and  the  other  La- 
manites.     Cruel  and  bloody  wars  ensued,  in  which  great  multitudes 
were  slain.     They  buried  their  dead  in  large  heaps,  which  caused 
the  mounds  so  common  in  this  country.     Their  arts,  sciences,  and 
civilization,  were  brought  into  view,  in  order  to  account  for  all  the 
curious  antiquities,  found  in  various  parts  of  North  and  South  Amer- 
ica.    I  have  recently  read  the  Book  of  Mormon,  and  to  my  great 
surprise  I  find  nearly  the  same  historical  matter,  names,  &c.,  as  they 
were  in  my  brother's  writings.     I  well  remember  that  he  wrote  in 
the  old  style,  and  commenced  about  every  sentence  with  '  And  it 
came  to  pass,'  or  '  Now  it  came  to  pass,'  the  same  as  in  tlie  Book 
of  Mormon,  and  according  to  the  best  of  my  recollection  and  belief, 
i*  is  the  same  as  my  brother  Solomon  wrote,  with  the  exception  of 


116  HISTORY   OF    THE    SAINTS. 

the  religious  matter.     By  what  means  it  has  fallen  into  the  hands  of 
Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  I  am  unable  to  determine.         John  Spalding. 


"Martha  Spalding,  the  wife  of  John  Spalding,  says, — 
"  I  was  personally  acquainted  with  Solomon  Spalding,  about 
twenty  3'ears  ago.  1  was  at  his  house  a  short  time  before  he  left 
Conneaut :  he  was  then  writing  an  historical  novel  founded  upon  the 
first  settlers  of  America.  He  represented  them  as  an  enlightened 
and  warlike  people.  He  had  for  many  years  contended  that  the  ab- 
origines of  America  were  the  descendants  of  some  of  the  lost  tribes 
of  Israel,  and  this  idea  he  carried  out  in  the  book  in  question.  The 
lapse  of  time  which  has  intervened,  prevents  my  recollecting  but  few 
of  the  leading  incidents  of  his  writings  ;  but  the  names  of  Nephi  and 
Lelii  are  yet  fresh  in  my  memory,  as  being  the  principal  heroes  of 
his  tale.  They  were  officers  of  the  company  wliich  first  came  off 
from  Jerusalem.  He  gave  a  particular  account  of  their  journey  by 
land  and  sea,  till  they  arrived  in  America,  after  which,  disputes  arose 
between  the  chiefs,  which  caused  them  to  separate  into  different 
bands,  one  of  which  was  called  Lamanites,  and  the  other  Nephites. 
Between  tliese  were  recounted  tremendous  battles,  which  frequently 
covered  the  ground  with  the  slain;  and  their  being  buried  in  large 
heaps  was  the  cause  of  the  numerous  mounds  in  the  country.  Some 
of  these  people  he  represented  as  being  very  large.  I  have  read  the 
Book  of  Mormon,  which  has  brought  fresh  to  my  recollection  the 
Avritings  of  Solomon  Spalding ;,  and  I  have  no  manner  of  doubt  that 
the  historical  part  of  it  is  the  same  that  I  read  and  heard  read  more 
than  twenty  years  ago.  The  old,  obsolete  style,  and  the  phrases  of 
'and  it  came  to  pass,'  &.C.,  are  the  same.  Martha  Spalding. 


"  "We  would  here  remark,  by  the  way,  that  it  would  appear  that 
Sol.  Spalding,  like  many  other  authors,  was  somewhat  vain  of  his 
writings,  and  was  constantly  showing  and  reading  them  to  his  neigh- 
bors. In  this  way  most  of  his  intimate  acquaintances  became  con- 
versant at  that  time  with  his  writings  and  designs.  We  might  there- 
fore introduce  a  great  number  of  witnesses,  all  testifying  to  the  same 
general  facts ;  but  we  have  not  taken  the  trouble  to  procure  the 
statements  of  but  few,  all  of  whom  are  the  most  respectable  men,  and 
highly  esteemed  for  their  moral  worth,  and  tlu  ir  characters  for  truth 
and  veracity  are  unimpeachable.  In  fact,  the  word  of  any  one  of 
them  would  have  more  weight  in  any  respectable  community,  than 
the  whole  family  of  Smiths  and  Whitmers,  who  have  told  about 
hearing  the  voice  of  an  angel. 


"Conneaut,  Ashtaluila  Co.,  Ohio,   September,  1833. 

"  I  left  the  State  of  New  York,  late  in  the  year  1810,  and  arrived 
at  this  place,  about  the  first  of  January  following.  Soon  after  my 
arrival,  I  formed  a  copartnership  with  Solomon  Spalding,  for  tlie 
purpose  of  rebuilding  a  forge  which  he  jiad  commenced  a  year  or  two 
before.  He  very  frequently  read  to  me  from  a  manuscript  which  he 
was  writing,  whieh  he  entitled  the  '  Manuscript  Found,'  and  which 


THE   BOOK   OF    MORMON.  117 

he  represented  as  being  found  in  this  town.  I  spent  many  hours  in 
hearing  him  read  said  \TTitiugs,  and  became  well  acquainted  with  its 
contents.  He  wished  me  to  assist  him  in  getting  his  production 
printed,  alleging  that  a  book  of  that  kind  would  meet  with  a  rapid 
sale.  I  designed  doing  so,  but  the  forge  not  meeting  our  anticipa- 
tions, we  failed  in  business,  when  I  declined  having  any  thing  to  do 
with  the  publication  of  the  book.  This  book  represented  the  Amer- 
ican Indians  as  the  descendants  of  the  lost  tribes,  gave  an  account 
of  their  leaving  Jerusalem,  their  contentions  and  v.'ars,  which  were 
many  and  great.  One  time,  when  he  was  reading  to  me  the  tragic 
account  of  Laban,  I  pointed  out  to  him  wliat  I  considered  an  incon- 
sistency, which  he  promised  to  correct ;  but  by  referring  to  the  Book 
of  Mormon,  I  find,  to  my  surprise,  that  it  stands  there  just  as  he  read 
it  to  me  then.  Some  months  ago,  I  borrowed  the  Golden  Bible,  put 
it  into  my  pocket,  carried  it  home,  and  thought  no  more  of  it.  About 
a  week  after,  my  wife  found  the  book  in  my  coat  pocket,  as  it  hung 
up,  and  commenced  reading  it  aloud  as  I  lay  upon  the  bed.  She 
had  not  read  twenty  minutes,  till  I  was  astonished  to  find  the  same 
passages  in  it  that  Spalding  had  read  to  me  more  than  twenty  years 
before,  from  his  '  Manuscript  Found.'  Since  that,  I  have  more  fully 
examined  the  said  Golden  Bible,  and  have  no  hesitation  in  saying 
that  the  historical  part  of  it  is  principally,  if  not  wholly,  taken  from 
the  '  Manuscript  Found.'  I  well  recollect  telling  Mr.  Spalding  that 
the  so  frequent  use  of  the  words  '  And  it  came  to  pass,'  '  Now  it 
came  to  pass,'  rendered  it  ridiculous.  Spalding  left  here  in  1812, 
and  I  furnished  him  the  means  to  carry  him  to  Pittsburgh,  where  he 
said  he  would  get  the  book  printed,  and  pay  me.  But  I  never  heard 
any  more  from  him  or  his  writings,  till  I  saw  them  in  the  Book  of 
Mormon.  Henry  Lake. 

"Springfield,  Pa.,  September,  1833. 

"In  the  year  1811,  J  was  in  the  employ  of  Henry  Lake  and  Solo- 
mon Spalding,  at  Conneaut,  engaged  in  rebuilding  a  forge.  While 
there,  I  boarded  and  lodged  in  the  family  of  said  Spalding,  for  seve- 
ral months.  I  was  soon  introduced  to  the  manuscripts  of  Spalding, 
and  perused  them  as  often  as  I  had  leisure.  He  had  written  two 
or  three  books  or  pamphlets  on  different  subjects ;  but  that  which 
more  particularly  drew  my  attention,  was  one  which  he  called  the 
'  Manuscript  Found.'  From  this  he  would  frequently  read  some  hu- 
morous passages  to  the  company  present.  It  purported  to  be  the 
history  of  the  first  settlement  of  America,  before  discovered  by  Colum- 
bus. He  brought  them  off  from  Jerusalem,  under  their  leaders  ;  de- 
tailing their  travels  by  land  and  water,  their  manners,  customs,  laws, 
wars,  &c.  He  said  that  he  designed  it  as  an  historical  novel,  and 
that  in  after  years  it  would  be  believed  by  many  people  as  much  as 
the  history  of  England.  He  soon  after  failed  in  business,  and  told 
me  he  should  retire  from  the  din  of  his  creditors,  finish  his  book  and 
have  it  published,  which  would  enable  him  to  pay  his  debts  and  sup- 
port his  family.  He  soon  after  removed  to  Pittsburgli,  as  I  under- 
stood. 

"  I  have  recently  examined  the  Book  of  Mormon,  and  find  in  it 
the  writings  of  Solomon  Spalding,  from  beginning  to  end,  but  nuxed 


118  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

up  with  Scripture  and  other  religious  matter,  which  1  did  not  meet 
with  in  tlie  '  Manuscript  Found.'  Many  of  the  passages  in  the  Mor- 
mon book  are  verbatim  from  Spalding,  and  others  in  part.  The 
names  of  Nephi,  Lehi,  Moroni,  and  in  fact  all  the  principal  names, 
are  brought  fresh  to  my  recollection,  by  the  Gold  Bible.  When 
Spalding  divested  his  history  of  its  fabulous  names,  by  a  verbal  ex- 
planntion,  he  landed  his  people  near  the  Straits  of  Darien,  which  I 
am  very  confident  he  called  Zaruhcmla ;  they  were  marched  about 
that  country  for  a  length  of  time,  in  which  wars  and  great  bloodshed 
ensued ;  he  brought  them  across  North  America  in  a  north-east  di- 
rection. John  N.  Miller. 


"  CONNEAUT,    August,    1833. 

"  I  first  became  acquainted  with  Solomon  Spalding  in  1S08  or  '9, 
when  he  commenced  building  a  forge  on  Conneaut  Creek.  When 
at  his  house,  one  day,  he  showed  and  read  to  me  a  history  he  was 
writing,  of  the  lost  tribes  of  Israel,  purporting  that  they  were  the 
first  settlers  of  America,  and  that  the  Indians  were  their  descend- 
ants. Upon  this  subject  we  had  frequent  conversations.  He  traced 
tlieir  journey  from  Jerusalem  to  America,  as  it  is  given  in  the  Book 
of  Mormon,  excepting  the  religious  matter.  The  historical  part  of 
the  Book  of  Mormon  I  know  to  be  the  same  as  I  read  and  heard 
read  from  the  writings  of  Spalding,  more  than  twenty  years  ago ; 
the  names,  more  especially,  are  the  same,  without  any  alteration.  He 
told  me  his  object  was  to  account  for  all  the  fortifications,  &c.,  to  be 
found  in  this  country,  and  said  that  in  time  it  would  be  fully  be- 
lieved by  all,  except  learned  men  and  historians.  I  once  anticipated 
reading  his  writings  in  print,  but  little  expected  to  see  them  in  a 
new  Bible.  Spalding  had  many  other  manuscripts,  which  I  expect 
to  see  when  Smith  translates  his  other  plate.  In  conclusion,  I  will 
observe,  that  the  names  of,  and  most  of  the  historical  part  of  the 
Book  of  Mormon,  were  as  familiar  to  me  before  I  read  it,  as  most 
modern  liistory.  If  it  is  not  Spalding's  writing,  it  is  the  same  as  he 
wrote ;  and  if  Smith  was  inspired,  I  think  it  was  by  the  same  spirit 
that  Spalding  was,  which  he  confessed  to  be  the  love  of  money. 

"Aaron  Wright. 


"  Conneaut,  August,  1833. 
"  When  Solomon  Spalding  first  came  to  this  place,  he  purchased 
a  tract  of  land,  surve3'ed  it  out,  and  commenced  selling  it.  While 
engaged  in  tliis  business,  he  boarded  at  my  house,  in  all  nearly  six 
months.  All  his  leisure  hours  were  occupied  in  writing  an  historical 
novel,  founded  upon  the  first  settlers  of  this  countr}'.  He  said  he 
intended  to  trace  their  journey  from  Jerusalem,  by  land  and  sea,  till 
their  arrival  in  America ;  give  an  account  of  their  arts,  sciences, 
civilization,  wars,  and  contentions.  In  this  way,  he  would  give  a 
satisfactory  account  of  all  of  the  old  mounds,  so  common  to  this 
country.  During  the  time  he  was  at  my  house,  I  read  and  heard 
read  one  hundred  pages  or  more.  Nephi  and  Lehi  were  by  him 
represented  as  leading  characters,  when  they  first  started  for  Amer- 
ica. Their  main  object  was  to  escape  the  judgments  which  they 
supposed  were  coming  upon  the  old  world.     But  no  religious  matter 


THE    BOOK    OF    MORMON.  119 

was  introduced,  as  I  now  recollect.  Just  berore  he  left  this  place 
Spalding  sent  for  me  to  call  on  him,  which  I  did.  He  then  said 
that  althouj^h  he  was  in  my  debt,  he  intended  to  leave  the  country 
and  hoped  I  would  not  prevent  him.  For,  says  he,  you  knowl 
have  been  writing  the  history  of  the  first  settlement  of  America, 
and  I  intend  to  go  to  Pittsburgh,  and  there  live  a  retired  life, 
till  I  have  completed  the  work,  and  when  it  is  printed,  it  will 
bring  me  a  fine  sum  of  money,  wliich  will  enable  me  to  return 
and  pay  off  all  my  debts.  The  book,  you  know,  will  sell,  as  every 
one  is  anxious  to  learn  ^mething  upon  that  subject.  This  was 
the  last  I  heard  of  Spalding  or  his  book,  until  the  Book  of  Mormon 
carne  into  the  neighborhood.  When  I  heard  the  historical  part  of 
it  related,  I  at  once  said  it  was  the  writings  of  old  Solomon  Spald- 
ing. Soon  after,  I  obtained  the  book,  and  on  reading  it,  found  nmch 
of  it  the  same  as  Spalding  had  written,  more  than  twenty  years 
before.  Oliver  Smith. 


"  CONNEAUT,  Jlu^tst,  1833. 

"  I  first  became  acquainted  with  Solomon  Spalding,  in  Dec,  1810. 
After  that  time,  I  frequently  saw  him  at  his  house,  and  also  at  my 
house.  I  once,  in  conversation  with  him,  expressed  a  surprise  at  not 
having  any  account  of  the  inhabitants  once  in  this  country,  who 
erected  the  old  forts,  mounds,  &c.  He  then  told  me  that  he  was 
writing  a  history  of  that  race  of  people ;  and  afterwards  frequently 
showed  me  his  writings,  which  I  read.  1  have  lately  read  the  Book 
of  Mormon,  and  believe  it  to  be  the  same  as  Spalding  wrote,  except 
the  religious  part.  He  told  me  that  he  intended  to  get  his  writings 
published  in  Pittsburgh,  and  he  thought  that  in  one  century  from 
that  time,  it  would  be  believed  as  much  as  any  other  history. 

"  Nahum  Howard. 


"  Artemas  Cunningham,  of  Perry,  Geauga  county,  states  as  follows : 
"In  the  month  of  October,  1811,  I  went  from  the  township  of 
Madison  to  Conneaut,  for  the  purpose  of  securing  a  debt  due  me 
from  Solomon  Spalding.  1  tarried  with  him  nearly  two  days,  for 
the  purpose  of  accomplishing  my  object,  which  I  was  finally  unable 
to  do.  I  found  him  destitute  of  the  means  of  paying  his  debts. 
His  only  hope  of  ever  paying  his  debts,  appeared  to  he  upon  the 
sale  of  a  book,  which  he  had  been  writing.  He  endeavored  to 
convince  me,  from  the  nature  and  character  of  the  work,  that  it 
would  meet  with  a  ready  sale.  Before  showing  me  his  manuscripts, 
he  went  into  a  verbnl  relation  of  its  outlines,  saying  that  it  was  a 
fabulous  or  romantic  history  of  the  first  settlement  of  this  country, 
and  as  it  purported  to  have  been  a  record  found  buried  in  the  earth, 
or  in  a  cave,  he  had  adopted  the-  ancient  or  Scripture  style  of  writ- 
ing. He  then  presented  his  manuscripts,  when  we  sat  down,  and 
spent  a  good  share  of  the  night  in  reading  them,  and  conversing 
upon  them.  I  well  remember  the  name  of  Nephi,  which  appeared 
to  be  the  principal  liero  of  the  story.  The  frequent  repetition  of  the 
phrase,  '  1  Nephi,'  1  recollect  as  distinctly  as  though  it  was  but  yes- 
terday, although  the  general  features  of  the  story  laave  passed  from 


120  HISTORY   OF   THE    SAINTS. 

my  memory,  through  the  lapse  of  twenty-two  years.  He  attempted 
to  account  for  the  numerous  antiquities  which  are  found  upon  this 
continent,  and  remarked  that,  after  this  generation  had  passed  away, 
his  account  of  the  first  inhabitants  of  America  would  be  considered 
as  authentic  as  any  other  history.  The  Mormon  Bible  I  have  par- 
tially examined,  and  am  fully  of  the  opinion  that  Solomon  Spald- 
ing had  written  its  outlines  before  he  left  Conneaut. 

"  Statements  of  the  same  import  might  be  multiplied  to  an  in- 
definite length ;  but  we  deem  it  unnecessary.  We  are  here  willing 
to  rest  the  question  in  the  hands  of  any  intelligent  jury,  with  a  cer- 
tainty that  their  verdict  would  be,  that  Solomon  Spalding  first  wrote 
the  leading  incidents  of  the  Book  of  Mormon,  instead  of  its  being 
found  by  the  Smith  famil}',  while  digging  for  gold,  and  its  contents 
afterwards  made  known  by  the  Supreme  Being. 

"  But  our  inquiries  did  not  terminate  here.  Our  next  object  was 
to  ascertain,  if  possible,  the  disposition  Spalding  made  of  his  man- 
uscripts. For  this  purpose,  a  messenger  was  despatched  to  look  up 
the  widow  of  Spalding,  who  was  found  residing  in  Massachusetts. 
From  her  we  learned  that  Spalding  resided  in  Pittsburgh  about  two 
years,  when  he  removed  to  the  township  of  Amity,  Washington 
county,  Pennsylvania,  where  he  lived  about  two  years,  and  died  in 
1816.  His  widow  then  removed  to  Onondaga  county.  New  York, 
married  again,  and  lived  in  Otsego  county,  and  subsequently  re- 
moved to  Massachusetts.  She  states  that  Spalding  had  a  great 
variety  of  manuscripts,  and  recollects  that  one  was  entitled  the 
'Manuscript  Found;'  but  of  its  contents  she  has  now  no  distinct 
knowledge.  While  they  lived  in  Pittsburgh,  she  thinks  it  was  once 
taken  to  the  printing-ofiice  of  Patterson  and  Lumhdln ;  but  whether 
it  was  ever  brought  back  to  the  house  again,  she  is  quite  uncertain  : 
if  it  was,  however,  it  was  then,  with  his  other  writings,  in  a  trunk 
which  she  had  left  in  Otsego  county,  New  York.  This  is  all  the 
information  that  could  be  obtained  from  her,  except  that  Mr. 
Spalding,  while  living,  entertained  a  strong  antipathy  to  tlie  Ma- 
sonic Institution,  which  may  account  for  its  being  so  frequently 
mentioned  in  the  Book  of  Mormon.  The  fact,  also,  that  Spalding, 
in  the  latter  part  of  his  life,  inclined  to  infidelity,  is  established  by  a 
letter  in  his  hand-writing,  now  in  our  possession. 

"  The  trunk  referred  to  by  the  widow,  was  subsequently  examined, 
and  found  to  contain  only  a  single  MS.  book,  in  Spalding's  hand- 
writing, containing  about  one  quire  of  paper.  This  is  a  romance, 
purporting  to  have  been  translated  from  the  Latin,  found  on  tuenty- 
four  rolls  of  parchment,  in  a  cave,  on  the  banks  of  Conneaut  Creek, 
but  written  in  modern  style,  and  giving  a  fabulous  account  of  a 
ship's  being  driven  upon  the  American  coast,  while  proceeding  from 
Rome  to  Britain,  a  short  time  previous  to  the  Christian  era,  this 
country  then  being  inhabited  by  the  Indians.  This  old  MS.  has 
been  shown  to  several  of  the  foregoing  witnesses,  who  recognize  it 
as  Spalding's,  he  having  told  them  that  he  had  altered  his  first  plan 
of  writing,  by  going  farther  back  with  dates,  and  writing  in  the  old 
Scripture  style,  in  order  that  it  might  appear  more  ancient.  They 
say  that  it  bears  no  resemblance  to  the  '  Manuscript  Found.' 

"  Here,  then,  our   inquiries   after  facts  partially  cease,   on   this 


THE    BOOK    OF    MORMON.  121 

subject.  We  have  fully  shown  that  the  Book  of  Mormon  is  the 
joint  production  of  Solomon  Spalding  and  some  other  designing 
kuave,  or,  if  it  is  what  it  purports  to  be,  the  Lord  God  has  graciously 
condescended,  in  revealing  to  Smith  his  will,  through  spectacles,  to 
place  before  him,  and  appropriate  to  his  own  use,  the  writings  and 
names  of  men  which  had  been  invented  by  a  person  long  betbre  in 
the  grave.  Having  established  the  fact,  therefore,  that  most  of  the 
names  and  leading  incidents  contained  in  the  Mormon  Bible, 
originated  with  Solomon  Spalding,  it  is  not  very  material,  as  we 
conceive,  to  show  the  way  and  manner  by  which  they  fell  into  the 
hands  of  the  Smith  family.  To  do  this,  however,  we  have  made 
some  inquiries. 

"  It  was  inferred  at  once  that  some  light  might  be  shed  upon  this 
subject,  and  the  mystery  revealed,  by  applying  to  Patterson  and 
Lainbdin,  in  Pittsburgh.  But  here  again  death  had  interposed  a 
barrier.  That  establishment  was  dissolved  and  broken  up  many  years 
since,  and  Lanibdin  died  about  eight  years  ago.  Mr.  Patterson  says 
he  has  no  recollection  of  any  such  manuscript  being  brought  there 
for  publication,  neither  would  ho  have  been  likely  to  have  seen  it,  as 
the  business  of  printing  was  conducted  wholly  by  Lambdin  at  that 
time.  He  says,  however,  that  many  MS.  books  and  pamphlets  were 
brought  to  the  office  about  that  time,  which  remained  upon  their 
shelves  for  years,  without  being  printed  or  even  examined.  Now, 
as  Spalding's  book  can  nowhere  be  found,  or  any  thing  heard  of  it 
after  being  carried  to  this  establishment,  there  is  the  strongest  pre- 
sumption that  it  remained  there  in  seclusion  till  about  the  year  1823 
or  '24.  at  which  time  Sidney  Rigdon  located  himself  in  that  city. 
We  have  been  credibly  informed  that  he  was  on  terms  of  intimacy 
with  Lambdin,  being  seen  frequently  in  his  shop.  Rigdon  resided 
in  Pittsburgh  about  three  years,  and  during  the  whole  of  that  time, 
as  he  has  since  frequently  asserted,  abandoned  preaching  and  all 
other  employment,  for  the  purpose  of  studijing  tlic  Bible.  He  left 
there,  and  came  into  the  county  where  he  now  resides,  about  tlie 
time  Lambdin  died,  and  commenced  preaching  some  new  points  of 
doctrine,  which  were  afterwards  found  to  be  inculcated  in  the  Mor 
mon  Bible.  He  resided  in  this  vicinity  about  four  years  previous  to 
the  appearance  of  the  book,  during  which  time  he  made  several  long 
visits  to  Pittsburoh,  and  perhaps  to  the  Susquehannah,  where  Smith 
was  then  digging  for  money,  or  pretending  to  be  translating  plates. 
It  may  be  observed  also,  that  about  the  time  Rigdon  left  Pittsburgh, 
the  Smith  family  began  to  tell  about  finding  a  book  that  would  con- 
tain a  history  of  the  first  inhabitants  of  America,  and  that  two  years 
elapsed  before  they  finally  got  possession  of  it. 

"  We  are,  then,  irresistibly  led  to  this  conclusion  —  that  Lamb- 
din, after  having  failed  in  business,  had  recourse  to  the  old  manu- 
scripts then  in  his  possession,  in  order  to  raise  the  wind,  by  a  book 
speculation,  and  placed  the  'Manuscript  Found,'  of  Spalding,  in  the 
hands  of  Ricrdon,  to  be  embellished,  altered,  and  added  to,  as  he 
might  think  expedient;  and  three  years'  study  of  the  Bible,  we 
should  deem  little  time  enough  to  garble  it,  as  it  is  transferred  to 
tiie  Mormon  book.  The  former,  dying,  left  the  latter  the  sole  pro- 
11 


122  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

pnetor,  who  was  obliarod  to  resort  to  his  wits,  and  in  a  miraculous 
way,  to  bring  it  before  the  world  ;  for  in  no  other  manner  could  such 
a  book  be  published  without  great  sacrifice.  And  where  could  a 
more  suitable  character  be  found  than  Joe  Smith,  whose  necro- 
mantic fame  and  arts  of  deception  had  already  extended  to  a  con- 
siderable distance  ?  That  Lambdin  was  a  person  every  way  qualified 
and  fitted  for  such  an  enterprise,  we  have  the  testimony  of  his 
partner  in  business,  and  others  of  his  acriuaintance.  Add  to  all ' 
these  circumstances  the  facts  that  Rigdon  had  prepared  the  minds, 
in  a  great  measure,  of  nearly  a  hundred  of  those  who  had  attended 
his  ministration,  to  be  in  readiness  to  embrace  the  first  mysterious 
ism  that  should  be  presented  ;  tlie  appearance  of  Cowdcry  at  his 
residence  as  soon  as  the  book  was  printed  ;  his  sudden  conversion, 
after  many  pretensions  to  disbelieve  it ;  Jiis  immediately  repairing 
to  the  residence  of  Smitii,  three  hundred  miles  distant,  where  lie 
was  forthwith  appointed  an  elder,  high-priest,  and  a  scribe  to  the 
Propliet ;  tlie  pretended  vision  that  his  residence  in  Ohio  was  the 
'  promised  land  ; '  the  immediate  removal  of  the  whole  Smith  family 
thither,  where  they  were  soon  raised  from  a  state  of  poverty  to  com- 
parative affluence.  We,  therefore,  must  hold  out  Sidney  Rigdon  to 
the  world  as  being  the  original  'author  and  proprietor'  of  the  whole 
Mormon  conspiracy,  until  further  light  is  elicited  upon  the  lost 
writings  of  Solomon  Spalding." 

Mormonism  Unveiled,  htj  E.  D.  Hoioe,  pp.  278 — 21*0. 


Jiev.  J.JV.  T.  Tucker's  Statement. 

MORMONISM.  — SO.ME  CURIOUS  FACTS. 

"Messrs.  Editors  : 

"  Having  noticed  in  a  late  number  of  the  Signs  of  the 
Times,  a  notice  of  a  work,  entitled  Mormon  Delusions  and  Mon- 
strosities, it  occurred  to  me  that  it  might,  perhaps,  be  of  service  to 
the  cause  of  truth,  to  state  one  circumstance  in  relation  to  the 
authenticity  f)f  the  Book  of  Mormon,  wliich  occurred  during  its 
publication,  at  which  time  I  was  a  practical  printer,  and  engaged  in 
the  office  where  it  was  printed,  and  became  familiar  with  the  men 
and  tlieir  principles,  through  whose  agency  it  was  'got  up.' 

"  The  circumstance  alluded  to  was  as  follows  :  —  We  had  heard 
mur.li  said  by  Martin  Harris,  the  man  who  paid  for  the  printing, 
and  the  only  one  in  the  concern  worth  any  property,  about  the  won- 
derful wisdom  of  tlie  translators  of  the  "mysterious  plates,  and  re- 
solved to  test  their  wisdom.  Accordingly,  after  putting  one  sheet 
in  type,  we  laid  it  aside,  and  told  Harris  it  was  lost,  and  there  would 
be  a  serious  defection  in  the  book  in  consequence,  unless  another 
sheet  like  the  original  could  be  produced.  Tlie  announcement 
threw  the  old  gentleman  into  quite  an  excitement.  But  al'ter  a  few- 
moments'  reflection,  he  said  he  would  try  to  obtain  anotlier.  After 
two  or  three  weeks,  anotlier  sheet  was  produced,  but  no  more  like 
the  original  than  any  other  sheet  of  paper  would  have  been,  written 
over  by  a  common  sclioolboy,  after  having  read,  as  they  did,  the 
niauuscripta  preceding  and  succeeding  the  lost  sheet. 


THE    BOOK    OF    MORMON.  123 

"  As  might  be  expected,  the  disclosure  of  the  plan  greatly  annoyed 
the  authors,  and  caused  no  little  merriment  among  those  wlio  were 
acquainted  with  the  circumstance.  As  we  were  none  of  us  Chris- 
tians, and  onlj'  labored  for  the  '  gold  that  perisheth,'  we  did  not 
care  for  the  delusion,  only  so  far  as  to  be  careful  to  avoid  it  our- 
selves, and  enjoy  the  hoax-  JYot  one  of  the  hands  in  the  office 
where  the  wonderful  book  was  printed,  ever  became  a  convert  to 
tlie  system,  although  the  writer  of  this  was  often  assured  by  Harris, 
if  he  did  not,  he  would  be  destroyed  in  1S3'2. 

"  I  am  well  acquainted  with  the  two  gentlemen  vi-hose  names 
appear  on  pages  5li,  51,  in  the  work  referred  to  at  the  head  of  this 
article,  and  know  the  certificate  above  their  names  to  be  true.  I 
have  known  several  instances  of  the  grossest  impostures  by  them  in 
their  pretensions  of  workinof  miracles,  &c.  &c.,  and  am  greatly  sur- 
prised that  such  a  man  as  Nickerscin,  of  j'our  city,  can  induce  any 
rational  person  to  follow  in  his  pernicious  ways. 

"  Mrs.  Harri.s,  the  wife  of  Martin  Harris,  was  so  familiar  with  the 
monstrous  wickedness  and  folly  of  her  husband,  and  the  trio  who 
were  engaged  with  him,  that  she  would  not  follow  him,  nor  live  with 
him.  His  conduct  was  not  such  as  a  man  of  God  would  have  been. 
After  lie  had  beefi  absent  about  two  years,  and  frequent  reports  of 
his  having  power  to  heal  the  sick,  &c.,  had  reached  his  neighbor- 
hood, he  returned,  and  assured  his  wife  that  he  could  cure  her  of 
deafness,  witli  wliich  she  was  afflicted.  But  as  a  condition  of  so 
doing,  he  required  her  to  put  into  his  hands  abiyit  $1500  of  money 
which  she  had  managed  to  secure  out  of  the  avails  of  his  property, 
which  he  sold  on  joining  the  '  Latter  Day  Saints  '  colony.  She  assured 
him  he  should  have  every  dollar  as  soon  as  her  hearing  was  restored. 
But  lie  very  wisely  replied,  he  could  'have  no  evidence  of  her  faith 
until  she  put  the  cash  down  ; '  so,  of  course,  she  remained  deaf,  and 
Martin  went  back  to  the  '  promised  land '  with  pockets  as  light  as 
when  he  came. 

"  This  is,  no  doubt,  one  of  the  great  deceptions  which  should  come 
upon  the  people  on  tlie  eve  of  the  second  coming  of  the  Son  of  Man. 
Let  the  saints  of  God  beware  of  them.  Let  no  persecution  or  vio- 
lence be  opposed  to  them,  but  simply  an  avoidance,  and  we  shall 
soon  find  them  without  faith. 

"  Yours  in  the  gospel  of  Christ, 

"J.  N.  T.  Tucker. 

"Groton,  JJay  23,  1842." 

Signs  of  the  Times,  June  8,  1842. 


I  will  remark  here,  in  confirmation  of  the  above,  that  the 
Book  of  Mormon  was  originally  written  by  the  Rev.  Solo- 
mon Spalding,  A.  M.,  as  a  romance,  and  entitled  the  '*  Man- 
uscript Found,"  and  placed  by  him  in  the  printing-oflice 
of  Pattersi^fti  and  Lambdin,  in  the  city  of  Pittsburg,  from 
whence  it  was  taken  by  a  consijicnous  Mormon  divine,  and 
KE-MODELLED,  by  adding  the  religious  portion,  placed  by 


124  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

him  in  Smith's  possession,  and  then  published  to  the  world, 
as  the  testimony  exemplijies.  This  I  have  from  the  Con- 
federation, and  of  its  perfect  correctness  there  is  not  the 
shadow  of  a  doubt.  There  never  were  any  plates  of  the 
Book  of  Mormon,  excepting  what  were  seen  by  the  spirit- 
ual, and  not  the  natural,  eyes  of  the  witnesses.  The  story 
of  the  plates  is  all  chimerical. 


THE   CLAIMS   AND   ABSURDITIES   OF  THE   BOOK    OF 

MORMON. 

I  quote  from  Harris's  work  :  — 

"  Probably,  in  the  history  of  the  world,  there  is  not  to  be  found 
an  instance  of  more  cool  impudence,  and  deliberate  blasphemy,  than 
is  contained  in  the  Book  of  Mormon.  Coming  forth,  as  has  been 
shown,  without  one  shadow  of  evidence  in  its  favor,  either  circum- 
stantial or  direct,  except  what  has  evidently  been  manufactured  for 
the  occasion,  it  claims  for  itself,  or  the  Mormons  claim  for  it,  a  rank 
and  importance  excelled  by  nothing  that  has  gone  belbre. 

"  In  the  first  place;  it  is  claimed  to  be  a  new  and  everlasting  cove- 
nant, doing  away  with  all  former  covenants.  This  is  expressed  in  a 
revelation  given  to  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  Book  of  Covenants,  pages  91 
and  178:  'And  this  condemnation  resteth  on  the  children  of  Zion, 
even  all ;  and  they  shall  remain  under  this  condemnation  until  they 
repent  and  remember  the  new  covenant,  even  the  Book  of  Mormon.' 
'  Behold,  I  say  unto  you,  tliat  all  old  covenants  have  been  done 
away  in  this  thing,  and  this  is  a  new  and  an  everlasting  covenant.' 

"  Secondly,  it  is  claimed  to  be  the  fulness  of  the  everlasting  gos- 
pel. Book  of  Covenants,  page  180  :  '  Behold,  this  is  wisdom  in  me  ; 
therefore  marvel  not,  for  the  hour  cometh,  that  I  will  drink  of  the 
fruit  of  the  vine  with  you,  on  the  earth,  and  with  Moroni,  whom  I 
have  sent  unto  j'ou,  to  reveal  the  Book  of  Mormon,  containing  the 
fulness  of  my  everlasting  gospel.' 

"Thirdly,  it  claims  a  preeminence  over  the  Bible.  Book  of  Mor- 
mon,* page  30,  where  the  Roman  cliurch  is  referred  to,  as  '  having 
taken  away  from  the  gospel  many  parts  which  are  plain  and  most 
precious  ;  and  also  many  covenants  of  the  Lord  have  they  taken 
away,'  &c.;  and  on  page  32  you  find  that  the  preference  is  taken  to 
itself,  in  that  it  professes  to  make  known  the  '  plain  and  precious 
things  which  liave  been  taken  away.' 

"Here,  then,  are  some  of  the  claims  of  this  truly  wonderful  book. 
The  world  is  informed  that  all  old  covenants  are  done  away ;  the 
promises  of  the  Bible,  therefore,  are  void  ;  and  hereafter  we  must 
look  alone  for  comfort  to  the  Book  of  Mormon.     Not  only  this,  it  is 

*  Tiie  first  edition  is  referred  to. 


THE    BOOK    OF    MORMON.  125 

the  complete  g-nspel ;  of  course  tlie  New  Testament  must  be  impcr 
feet.  And  above  all,  it  corrects  the  errors  in  tlie  present  translation 
of  tiie  Bible.     Wonderful,  indeed  ! ! 

"  Having  given  the  exhibition  of  the  claims  of  the  Book  of  Mor- 
mon, let  us  examine  some  of  the  absurdities  and  contradictions  to 
Scripture  apparent  on  tlie  face  of  it.  These  are  very  numerous,  and 
to  point  out  tiie  tithe  of  them  would  swell  this  pamphlet  far  beyond 
my  design. 

"  On  page  G5,  we  have  the  following:  '  And  now  behold,  if  Adam 
had  not  transgressed,  he  would  not  have  fallen  ;  but  lie  would  have 
remained  in  the  garden  of  Eden.  And  all  things  which  were  cre- 
ated, must  have  remained  in  the  same  state  which  they  were  after 
they  were  created ;  and  they  nmst  have  remained  forever,  and  had 
no  end.  And  they  would  have  had  no  children,  wherefore,  they 
would  have  remained  in  a  state  of  innocence,  having  no  joy,  for 
they  knew  no  misery;  doing  no  good,  for  they  knew  no  sin.  But 
behold,  all  things  have  been  done  in  the  wisdom  of  him  who  knoweth 
all  things.  Adam  fell,  that  men  might  be;  and  men  are,  tliat  they 
mi^vjit  liave  joy.' 

'•  Here  we  have  Adam  placed  in  a  very  sorry  dilemma  ;  for  in 
Genesis,  i.  28,  he  is  commanded  to  'be  fruitful,  and  multiply,  and 
replenish  the  earth; '  and  in  chapter  ii.  17,  he  is  commanded  not  to 
'  eat  of  the  tree  of  knowledge  of  good  and  evil.'  But,  according  to 
the  Book  of  Mormon,  had  Adam  not  transgressed,  he  would  have 
had  no  children.  If  this  be  correct,  Adam  was  obliged  to  transgress 
the  second  command,  above  mentioned,  that  is,  eat  the  fruit  for- 
bidden, in  order  that  lie  might  obey  the  first  commandment,  to  mul- 
tiply and  replenisli  the  earth.  Was  ever  a  contradiction  made  more 
glaring  .=  The  truth  of  the  Bible  must  be  denied,  or  else  the  Book 
of  Mi>pi*)i)n  is  untrue. 

'•  But  mrtiier  :  the  passage  says  that  our  first  parents  '  had  no  joy, 
fur  the}'  kri'^w  no  misery ; '  in  other  words,  they  were  in  a  state  of  per- 
fect nentrjdJM'.  and  incapable  of  enjoyment.  If  this  Be  true,  why  did 
God  planf^Bkgarden  of  Eden,  and  cause  in  it  to  grow  every  tree 
that  is  pleasai^fc©  the  sight,  and  good  for  food  .'  And  why  did  he 
place  Adam  in  the  garden  to  dress  it  and  to  keep  it  .-■  Why,  I  ask,  did 
God  place  man  in  such  a  perfect  Paradise,  surrounded  by  every 
thing  to  produce  enjoyment,  and  nothing  to  disturb  it,  and  yet  not 
confer  on  him  the  power  of  enjoyment .''  Such  nonsense  is  too 
trivial  for  argument. 

"  But  further :  the  passage  says,  '  Adam  did  no  good,  for  he  knew 
no  sin.'  According  to  this,  there  can  be  no  good  done  without  sin. 
The  angels,  tlierefore,  who  sin  not,  do  no  good.  But  was  Adam 
doing  no  good  when-  iti  a  state  of  purity,  obeying  the  commands  of 
God  ?  Is  not  the  rendition  of  such  obedience  the  very  height  of 
goodness.'  But  if  Adam,  in  a  state  of  innocence,  did  no  good,  for 
what  did  God  create  him.'  The  conclusion  is  inevitable,  tliat  he 
created  him  for  no  purpose  at  all,  or  else  he  created  him  to  sin. 
To  suppose  the  former,  would  make  God  create  man  from  a  mere 
whim  ;  and  to  suppose  the  latter,  would  make  Him,  and  not  the  Devil, 
the  author  of  sin.  In  either  case,  an  absurdity  necessarily  follows. 
11* 


126  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

'•'  Here,  then,  is  a  short  passage  from  this  veritable  book,  contain- 
ing nothing  but  contradiction,  nonsense,  and  absurdity. 

"Again,  on  the  same  page,  (65,)  we  find  the  following:  '  Where- 
fore men  are  free,  according  to  the  flesh,  and  all  things  are  given 
tlieni  wliicli  is  expedient  unto  man.  And  they  are  free  to  choose 
libert}',  and  eternal  life,  through  the  great  mediation  of  all  men.' 
Now,  what  are  we  to  understand  from  this  ?  Why,  certainly, 
nothing  more  nor  less,  than  that  all  men  are  mediators;  and  if 
we  obtain  liberty  and  eternal  life,  at  all,  it  must  be  through  the 
mediation  of  all  men.  What,  then,  becomes  of  the  words  of  the 
apostle,  in  Tim.  ii.  5,  where  he  says,  there  is  '  one  Mediator  be- 
tween God  and  man.'  Certainly  the  IBook  of  Mormon,  or  else  St. 
Paul,  must  be  wrong. 

"  Again,  on  page  424,  the  following  passage  occurs  :  '  Behold  they 
(speaking  of  oatlis  and  covenants)  were  put  into  the  heart  of  Gadi- 
anton,  by  that  same  being  wlio  did  entice  our  first  parents  to  partake 
of  the  forbidden  fruit;  yea,  tliat  same  being,  who  did  plot  with  Cain, 
that  if  he  would  murder  his  brother  Abel,  it  should  not  be  known 
unto  the  world.'  'And  he  did  plot  with  Cain,  and  his  followers, 
from  tliat  time  forth.  And,  also,  it  was  that  same  being,  who  put  it 
into  the  heads  of  the  people,  to  build  a  Tower,  sufficiently  high,  that 
they  might  get  to  heaven.  And  it  was  that  same  being  which  led 
on  the  people,  which  came  from  that  tower,  into  this  land.'  Now, 
liere  it  is  positively  stated,  that  the  being  wlio  tempted  Eve,  &c., 
that  is,  tlie  Devil,  was  the  leader  of  the  Jaredites,  or  the  people 
who  came  from  the  Tower  of  Babel,  in  Babylon,  to  the  American 
continent.  But,  by  reference  to  pages  539  and  540,  we  will  find 
the  following :  «  And  it  came  to  pass,  the  Lord  did  hear  the  brother 
of  Jared,  and  he  had  compassion  upon  him,  and  said  unto  him,  go  to, 
and  gather  together  thy  flocks,  both  male  and  female,  of  every  kind; 
and  also,  of  the  seed  of  the  earth,  of  every  kind,  and  thy  families ; 
and  also,  Jared,  thy  brother,  and  his  family ;  and  also  thy  friends, 
and  their  families.  And  wiien  thou  hast  done  this,  tiiou  shalt  go  at 
the  liead  of  them  down  into  the  valley  which  is  nojithward,  and 
there  will  I  meet  thee,  an'd  I  will  go  before  thee,  into"  a  hmd  which 
is  choice  above  all  the  land  of  the  earth.'  Here  there  is  a  positive 
contradiction.  I'hese  two  statements  both  refer  to  the  same  people, 
and  to  the  same  journey ;  in  one  of  which,  the  Devil  is  represented 
as  the  leader,  and  in  the  other,  the  Lord.  In  reading  these  passages, 
one  is  reminded  of  the  adage  —  'Liars,  to  be  consistent,  should  have 
good  memories.' 

"  But  now  for  the  climax.  On  page  54^,  we  have  a  description 
of  the  barges  in  which  all  the  people,  before  referred  to,  crossed  the 
ocean.  It  is  in  these  words  :  '  And  the  Lord  said,  go  to  work,  and 
build  after  the  manner  of  barges,  which  ye  have  hitherto  built. 
And  it  came  to  pass,  that  the  brotlier  of  Jared  did  go  to  work,  and 
also  his  brethren,  and  built  barges  after  the  manner  which  they  had 
built,  according  to  the  instructions  of  the  Lord.  And  they  were 
small  and  they  were  light  upon  the  water,  even  unto  the  lightness 
of  a  fowl,  upon  the  water;  and  they  were  built  after  the  manner 
that  they  were  exceedingly  tight,  even  thai  they  would  hold  water 


THE    BOOK    OF    MORMON.  127 

like  unto  a  dish ;  and  the  sides  thereof  were  tiglit  like  unto  a  dish  ; 
and  the  ends  were  peaked  :  and  the  top  thereot"  was  tight  like  unto 
a  dish  ;  and  the  length  thereof  was  the  length  of  a  tree ;  and  the 
door  thereof,  when  it  was  shut,  was  tight  like  unto  a  dish.  And  it 
came  to  pass,  that  the  brother  of  Jared  cried  unto  the  Lord,  saying  : 
O  Lord,  I  have  performed  the  work  which  thou  hast  commanded 
rae,  and  I  have  made  the  barges  according  as  thou  hast  directed  uie. 
And,  behold,  in  them  there  is  no  light,  whither  shall  we  steer?  and 
also,  we  shall  perish,  for  in  them  we  cannot  breathe,  save  it  is  the  air 
that  is  in  thenl;  therefore  are  we  to  perish. 

"  '  And  the  Lord  said  unto  the  brother  of  Jared,  behold  thou  shalt 
make  a  hole  in  the  top  thereof,  and  also  in  the  bottom  thereof,  and 
when  thou  shalt  suffer  for  air  thou  shalt  unstop  the  hole  thereof,  and 
receive  air. 

"  '  And  if  it  be  so  that  the  water  come  in  upon  thee,  behold  ye  shall 
stop  the  hole  thereof,  that  ye  may  not  perish  in  the  floods. 

"  '  And  it  came  to  pass,  that  the  brother  of  Jared  did  so,  according 
as  the  Lord  had  commanded.  And  he  cried  again  unto  the  Lord, 
saying,  O  Lord,  behold  I  have  done  even  as  thou  hast  commanded 
me,  and  I  have  prepared  the  vessels  for  my  people,  and  behold  there 
is  no  light  in  them.  Behold,  O  Lord  !  wilt  thou  suffer  that  we  shall 
cross  this  great  water  in  darkness  ^  and  the  Lord  said  unto  the  broth- 
er of  Jared,  Avhat  will  ye  that  I  shall  do,  that  ye  may  have  light  in 
your  vessels .'  For  behold  ye  cannot  have  windows,*  for  they  will 
be  dashed  in  pieces ;  neither  shall  ye  take  fire  with  you,  for  ye  shall 
not  go  by  the  light  of  the  fire  ;  for,  behold,  ye  shall  be  as  a  whale  in 
the  midst  of  the  sea:  for  the  mountain  waves  shall  dash  upon  you. 
Nevertheless,  J  will  bring  you  up  again,  out  of  the  depths  of  the  sea; 
for  the  winds  have  gone  forth  out  of  my  mouth,  and  also  the  rains 
and  the  floods  have  I  sent  forth.' 

"  From  this  description,  we  learn  that  the  boats  were  made  per- 
fectly tight,  bottom,  top,  door,  and  sides  ;  and  were  of  the  length  of 
a  tree.  (Very  definite  !  almost  equal  to  the  witness  who  described  a 
stone  that  one  man  threw  at  another  as  being  about  the  size  of  a 
piece  of  chalk.)  But  these  boats,  although  made  according  to  the 
direction  of  God  himself,  appear  to  have  been  very  deficient;  for 
they  could  not  exist  in  them  for  want  of  air.  (A  strange  oversight 
for  God  to  make.)  But  the  remedy  is  the  funniest  of  all,  viz.,  to 
make  holes  in  both  the  top  and  bottom.  Yet  after  they  were  made, 
it  appears  that  they  could  be  of  but  little  use,  for  the  boats  were  to 
be  as  a  whale,  sometimes  under  the  water  and  sometimes  on  top. 
Of  course,  when  they  were  under  the  water,  they  were  in  as  bad  a 
fix  as  ever ;  for  they  had  to  keep  the  holes  stopped,  in  order  to  keep 
out  the  floods.  But  what  did  they  want  with  that  hole  in  the  bot- 
tom .'  I  was  told  by  a  Mormon  expounder,  that  the  holes  in  the  top 
and  bottom  were  so  made  on  account  of  the  roughness  of  the  pas- 
sage —  the  mountain  waves  dashing  the  boats  over  and  over,  so  that 
sometimes  the  top  would  be  uppermost,  and  sometimes  the  bottom. 

*  Q,nery.  What  kind  of  windows  are  liere  referred  to.'  If  of  glaag,  it  will  be 
recollected  that  such  were  not  in  use  until  modern  times  j  and  wliat  other  kind 
would  have  b««D  dashed  in  pieces'? 


128  inSTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

Hence  the  holes  were  made  to  suit  either  case.  What  an  idea ! 
men,  women,  children,  flocks,  bees,  &c.  &c.,  all  confined  in  a  tight 
vessel,  tumbling  and  rolling ;  one  moment  heads  up  and  the  next 
down ;  and  this  delightful  commingling  to  last  during  the  whole  pas- 
sage from  India  to  America.  What  squealing  there  must  have 
been  !  Truly,  this  was  a  perfect  sJiakingtogetlicr  of  the  elements, 
by  which  the  new  continent  was  to  be  populated. 

"  But  another  idea.  Trie  brother  of  Jared,  after  he  iiad  finislied 
the  barges,  which  admitted  neither  light  nor  air,  asks  the  Lord 
whither  he  shall  steer.  It  will  be  remembered  that  the  vessels  were 
perfectly  tight ;  there  were  no  lioles  for  either  oars  or  rudder,  and 
no  sails,  nor  could  they  see  any  place  without  the  boat,  when  once 
shut  up  in  it ;  and  yet  he  asks  the  Lord  to  what  point  he  sliould 
steer !  Truly,  ymith's  nautical  genius  nuist  have  been  extremely 
limited,  or  he  would  have  told  a  better  yarn  than  this.  But  it  docs 
seem  that  he,  in  this  description,  used  his  utmost  endeavors  to  see 
how  far  he  could  impose  on  the  gullibility  of  mankind. 

"  It  will  be  useless  to  make  any  further  comments  to  prove  the 
absurdities  of  this  extraordinary  book.  Enough  has  been  said,  al- 
ready, to  shov/  it  to  be  a  perfect  humbug.  A  great  number  of  otlier 
passages  might  be  quoted,  all  tending  to  prove  its  absurdities;  but 
the  limits  prescribed  for  this  book  compel  me  to  forbear." 

Mormonism  Portrayed,  pp.  10 — 14. 


THE  BOOK  OF  COVENANTS  — ITS  ABSUHDITIES  AND 
CONTRADICTIONS. 

I  again  quote  from  Harris's  work  :  — 

"  The  Book  of  Covenants  appears  to  be  regarded  by  the  Mormons 
as  equal,  in  point  of  authority  and  inspiration,  to  the  Bible.  It  con- 
tains, firstly,  an  exposition  of  the  doctrines  of  the  Church ;  and 
secondly,  a  number  of  revelations,  given  to  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  and 
othei-s,  either  explanatory  of  the  Scriptures,  or  directory  of  the  man- 
ner of  governing  tlie  Church,  both  in  things  temporal  and  spiritual. 
Like  the  Book  of  Mormon,  there  appear  on  its  face  many  absurdi- 
ties and  contradictions  to  Scripture,  which  it  may  be  important,  for 
the  object  of  this  work,  for  one  moment  to  examine. 

"  On  page  7,  Heb.  chajjter  xi.  verse  3,  is  quoted  thus :  '  Througli 
faith,  we  understand,  that  the  worlds  were  formed  by  the  word  of 
God;  so  that  things  which  are  seen,  were  not  made  of  things  which 
do  appear.'  On  this  passage,  the  following  wise  commeiftary  is 
made  :  '  By  this  we  understand  that  the  principle  of  power,  which 
existed  in  the  bosom  of  God,  by  which  the  worlds  were  framed,  was 
faith,  and  that  it  is  by  reason  of  this  principle  of  power,  existino-  in 
the  Deity,  that  all  created  things  exist;  so  that  all  tilings  in  heaven, 
on  earth,  and  under  the  earth,  exist  by  reason  of  faith,  as  it  exists 
in  him.'     '  Had  it  not  been  for  tlie  principle  of  faith,  the  worlds 


THE    BOOK    OF    MORMON.  129 

would  never  have  been  framed,  neither  would  man  have  been  formed 
of  llie  dust;  it  is  the  principle  by  whicii  Jehovah  works,  and 
through  which  he  exercises  power  over  all  temporal  as  well  as  eter 
nal  things;  take  this  principle  or  attribute  (for  it  is  an  attribute) 
from  the  Deity,  and  he  would  cease  to  exist.'  Here  is  a  brio-ht 
idea,  and  a  bright  perception  of  the  meaning  of  language.  I'he 
apostle,  in  the  above  quotation,  says,'  Through  faith  we  understand.' 
Who  understand.'  'We,'  says  the  apostle.  Understand  what.' 
'That  the  worlds  were  framed  by  the  word  of  God,'  not  by  faith. 
The  evident  meaning  to  any  man,  even  of  the  most  ordinary  per- 
ception, is,  that  the  followers  of  Christ,  through  the  aid  of  faith,  un- 
derstand or  know  that  the  worlds  were  made  by  the  power  of  God. 
Faith  must  always  have  a  subject ;  but  in  what  could  God  have 
faith.'  What  was  there  to  have  faith  in,  before  the  worlds  were 
framed  .'  But  admitting  that  there  were  other  beings,  God  was 
greater  than  they,  and  what  aid  could  he  derive  from  having  faith  in 
inferiors.'  To  suppose  that  God,  by  having  faith  in  others,  could  be 
aided,  would  be  taking  away  his  omnipotence ;  for  that  which  is  all 
powerful  cannot  be  made  stronger.  Furtlier,  if  I  perform  a  miracle 
through  faith  in  God,  the  miracle  is  not  my  work,  but  tlie  work  of 
God,  done  as  a  reward  of  my  faith;  to  say,  then,  that  God  could 
not  have  made  the  worlds  without  faith  in  others,  is  to  say  he  did 
not  make  them  at  all,  but  that  they  were  made  by  those  in  whom  he 
had  faith.  But  perhaps  we  are  to  understand  that  God  made  the 
worlds  through  faith  in  himself.  Now,  faith  in  himself  means  noth- 
ing more  than  confidence  in  himself;  to  say,  therefore,  that  God 
made  the  worlds  by  faith  in  himself,  is  to  say  that  he  made  them  by 
confidence  in  liimself     What  nonsense  ! 

"  On  page  rio,  it  is  said  that  'Enoch  was  twenty-five  years  old 
when  he  was  ordained,  under  the  hand  of  Adam;  and  he  was  sixty- 
five,  and  Adam  blessed  him,  and  he  saw  the  Lord ;  and  he  walked 
with  him,  and  was  before  his  face  continually,  and  he  walked  with 
God  three  hundred  and  sixty-five  years,  making  him  four  hundred 
and  thirty  years  old  when  he  was  translated.'  Per  Contra.  Gen. 
iv.  23,  reads  thus  :  '  And  all  the  days  of  Enoch  were  three  hundred 
sixty  and  five  years.'  Here,  then,  is  a  difference  of  only  sixty-five 
years  between  the  Mosaic  account  of  the  age  of  Enoch,  and  that 
given  by  Joe  Smith.     Which  is  correct .' 

"On  page  175,  we  have  the  following:  '  For  behold  I,  God,  have 
suffered  these  things  for  all,  that  they  might  not  suffer  even  as  J ; 
which  suffering  caused  myself,  even  God,  the  greatest  of  all,  to  trem- 
ble because  of  pain.'  The  idea  of  the  Godhead,  or  Divinity,  suffer- 
ing involuntary  pain,  will  excite  a  sneer  by  the  mere  mentioning. 

"On  page  102,  it  is  said,  'The  day  shall  come  when  you  shall 
comprehend  even  God.'  In  these  days  it  takes  a  shrewd  man  to 
comprehend  a  fool,  but  the  Mormons  are  to  comprehend  even  God ; 
of  course  their  comprehension  must  be  at  least  commensurate  with 
his  power,  which  is  infinite. 

"  The  prophet  Ezekiel  said  by  the  Lord, '  This  proverb  shall  be  no 
n.ore  heard  in  Israel,  "  The  fathers  have  eaten  sour  graphs,  and  the 


130  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

children's  teetli  are  set  on  edge.''  '  But  the  Mormons  have  revived 
this  proverb,  (page  ::Jrj,)  thus  :  after  stating  that  if  a  person  trespass 
against  you,  you  shall  forgive  him  three  times,  it  says,  '  But  if  lie 
trespass  against  thee  the  fourth  time,  thou  siialt  not  forgive  him,  but 
thou  shalt  bring  these  testimonies  before  the  Lord,  and  they  shall 
not  he  blotted  out  until  he  repent  and  reward  tJice  fouri'old  in  all 
things  wherewith  he  has  tresjiassed  against  thee,  and  if  he  do  this 
thou  shalt  forgive  him  with  all  thine  heart;  and  if  he  do  not  this,  I, 
the  Lord,  will  avenge  thee  of  thine  enemies  an  hundred  fold ;  and 
upon  his  children,  and  his  cliildren's  cliildren,  of  all  them  that  hate 
me,  until  the  third  and  fourth  generations.'  Here  is  the  old  proverb 
revived  with  a  vengeance  !  For  it  will  be  perceived,  by  reading  the 
next  few  lines,  that  there  is  no  forgiveness  to  the  children  unless 
they  restore  the  trespass  of  their  fathers,  and  that,  too,  fourfold. 
It  reads  thus:  'But  if  the  children  shall  repent,  or  the  children's 
children,  and  turn  unto  the  Lord  their  God,  with  all  their  hearts, 
and  with  all  their  might,  mind,  and  strength,  and  restore  fouri'old, 
for  all  their  trcs])asses  wherewith  they  have  trespassed,  and  where- 
with their  fathers  Jiave  trespassed,  or  tlieir  fathers'  fathers,  then 
thine  indignation  shall  be  turned  away,  and  vengeance  shall  no  more 
come  upon  them.'     If  this  be  true,  hard  late  for  the  Mormons. 

"On  page  106,  in  speaking  of  C'hrist,  it  is  said,  that  'The  saints 
shall  be  filled  with  his  glory,  and  receive  their  inheritance,  and  be 
made  equal  with  him.'  On  this  passage.  Parley  P.  Pratt,  in  the  Voice 
of  Warning,  (a  standard  work  of  the  Mormons,)  makes  the  following 
argument,  whicJi  I  give  in  this  place  as  an  illustration  of  the  wild, 
doctrines  of  Mormonism :  '  See  the  prayer  of  Christ  recorded  by 
John,  concerning  his  saints  becoming  one  with  him  and  the  father, 
as  they  are  one,  and  certainly  they  are  equal :  and  again,  the  saints 
are  joint  heirs  with  him ;  and  again,  he  that  overcometh  shall  sit  down 
with  Christ  on  his  throne,  as  he  has  overcome  and  set  down  with 
the  father  on  his  throne  ;  and  again,  the  spirit  shall  guide  his  saints 
unto  all  truth,  God  is  in  possession  of  all  truth,  and  no  more,  conse- 
quently his  saints  will  know  what  he  knows  ;  and  it  is  an  acknowl- 
edged principle  that  knowledge  is  power;  consequently  if  they  had 
the  same  knov/ledge  that  God  has,  they  will  have  the  same  power. 
And  this  will  fulfil  the  Scriptures  wiiich  say,  unto  him  that  believ- 
eth  all  things  are  possilile,  and  I  am  sure  God  can  do  no  more  than 
all  things;  consequently,  there  must  be  equality.  Heuce  the  pro- 
priety of  calling  them  God's,  even  the  sons  of  God.'  Such  is  the 
reasoning  of  the  Apostle  Parley  P.  Pratt,  and  such  is  the  doctrine 
ot  the  Church,  for  they  believe  that  they  will  have  power  to  create 
worlds,  and  that  those  worlds  will  transgress  the  law  given;  conse- 
quently they  will  become  saviors  to  those  worlds,  and  redeem  them ; 
never,  until  all  this  is  accomplished,  will  their  glory  be  complete ; 
and  then  there  will  be  '  Lords  many  and  Gods  many.'  " 

Mormonism  Portrayed,  pp.  20 — 23. 


THE    BOOK    OF    MORMON.  131 

MORMON   PARADISE. 
Harris  says,  — 

"  The  Mormon  idea  of  a  Paradise  is  a  singular  feature  in  their 
creed.  They,  however,  regard  it  as  one  which  shows  the  superi- 
ority of  tiieir  system  over  all  others,  and  ridicule,  as  absurd,  tlie  no- 
tion generally  entertained  of  the  location  and  nature  of  heaven.  As 
a  matter  of  curiosity,  then,  as  well  as  to  make  a  further  display  of 
the  absurdities  of  Mormonism,  I  will  here  insert  a  description  of  the 
Mormon  Paradise,  taken  from  the  Voice  of  Warning,  pages  179, 
SO  Alluding  to  a  prophecy  in  the  Book  of  Mormon,  the  author 
says,  '  From  this  prophecy  we  learn.  First,  That  America  is  a  chosen 
land.  Secondly,  That  it  is  the  place  of  the  new  Jerusalem,  which 
shall  come  down  from  God  out  of  heaven  upon  the  cait'i,  when  it  is 
renewed.  Thirdly,  That  a  new  Jerusalem  is  to  be  built  in  America, 
to  tiie  renmant  of  Joseph,  (the  Indians,)  like  unto  or  after  a  similar 
pattern  to  the  old  Jerusalem  in  the  land  of  Canaan  ;  and  that  the 
old  Jerusalem  shall  be  rebuilt  at  the  same  time  ;  and  this  being  done, 
botii  cities  will  continue  in  prosperity  on  the  earth,  until  the  great 
and  last  change,  when  the  heavens  and  the  earth  are  to  be  renewe<}. 
Fourth,  We  learn  that  when  this  change  takes  place,  the  two  cities 
are  caught  up  into  heaven,  together  with  tlie  inhabitants  thereof, 
and  being  changed,  and  made  new,  the  one  comes  down  on  t!ie 
American  land,  and  the  other  to  its  ov,'n  place  as  formerly.  Fifth, 
Wo  learn  that  tlie  inhabitants  are  the  same  that  gathered  togetlicr 
and  first  builded  them.  The  remnant  of  Joseph  and  those  gathered 
v.-ilh  tliem,  inherit  the  new  Jerusalem  ;  and  the  tribes  of  Israel, 
gathered  from  the  north  countries,  and  from  the  four  quarters  of  the 
earth,  inhabit  the  other,  and  thus  ail  things  being  made  new,  w&  find 
those  who  were  once  strangers  and  pilgrims  on  the  earth,  in  pos- 
session of  that  better  country,  and  that  city  tor  ivhich  they  sought.' 

"  Here,  then,  is  a  j)icture  of  the  Mormon  Paradise.  Let  us  now, 
for  a  moment,  compare  it  to  the  Paradise  cf  God,  or  the  city  of  in- 
heritance, spoken  cf,  and  sought  for,  by  the  prophets  and  apostles. 

"  Christ  said,  v^hen  on  earth,  '  In  my  Father's  house  are  many 
mansions ;  if  it  were  not  so,  I  would  have  told  you.  I  go  to  prepare 
a  place  for  you.'  Now,  where  did  Christ  speak  of  going.''  To  the 
earth .'  He  was  already  there,  and  on  the  very  spot  where  one  of 
the  new  Jerusalems,  acrrrding  to  the  Mormons,  is  to  be.  He  meant, 
evidently,  to  his  Father's  house,  the  place  where  is  the  throne  of  God. 
Paul,  in  his  allusion  to  this  passage,  says,  'For  we  know,  that  if 
this  earthly  house  of  our  tabernacle  were  dissolved,  we  have  a  build- 
ing of  God,  a  house  not  made  with  hands,  eternal  in  the  heavens.' 
And  speaking  of  Abraham,  'For  he  looked  for  a  city  which  hath 
foundations,  whose  maker  and  builder  is  God.'  Here  is  Paul's  idea 
of  iieaven,  '  a  house  not  made  with  hands,  eternal  (that  is,  existing 
from,  and  to,  all  eternity)  in  the  heavens.'  The  Mormon  Paradise, 
on  the  other  hand,  is  to  be  built  by  men,  (not  by  God,  as  was  Abra- 
ham's,) and  does  not  yet  e.xist.     Again,  Peter  says,  '  Blessed  be  the 


132  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

God  and  Father  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  which,  according  to  his 
abundant  mercy,  hath  begotten  us  again  unto  a  hvel}'  hope,  by 
tile  resurrection  of  Jesus  l;^hrist  from  the  dead,  to  an  inheritance 
incorruptible,  uudefiled,  and  tliat  fadeth  not  away;  reserved  in  the 
heavens  for  you,  who  are  kept  by  the  power  of  God;  through  faith, 
unto  salvation,  ready  to  be  revealed  in  the  last  time.'  Here  Peter's 
inheritance  is  '  reserved  in  the  heavens ; '  not  to  be  built  here- 
after, but  now  being,  and  reserved  'ready  to  be  revealed  at  the 
last  time.' 

"  Again,  Peter,  in  his  2d  Epistle,  3d  chapter,  and  10— 13th  verses, 
says,  '  The  day  of  the  Lord  will  come  as  a  thief  in  the  night,  in  the 
which  the  heavens  shall  pass  away  with  a  great  noise,  and  the  ele- 
ments shall  melt  with  fervent  heat ;  the  earth,  also,  and  the  works 
that  are  therein,  shall  be  burned  up.  Seeing,  then,  that  all  these 
things  shall  be  dissolved,  what  manner  of  persons  ought  ye  to  be  in 
all  holy  conversation  and  godliness,  looking  for  and  hasting  unto 
the  coming  of  the  day  of  God,  wherein  the  heavens,  being  on  fire, 
shall  be  dissolved,  and  the  elements  shall  melt  with  fervent  heat .'' 
nevertheless  we,  according  to  his  promise,  look  for  new  heavens  and 
a  new  earth,  wherein  dwelleth  rigliteousness.'  T^ow,  here  Peter  says 
that  the  old  earth  shall  pass  away,  and  that,  according  to  the  prom- 
ise of  God,  we  look  for  a  '  ncio  heaven,  and  a  ncic  earth ; '  not  the 
present  heavens  and  the  present  earth  rencircd,  as  the  Mormons  have 
it.  To  renew  merely  implies  to  change ;  but  Peter  says  that  the  ' 
earth  shall  pass  away.  Again,  John,  referring  to  the  same,  Rev.  21st 
chapter,  1st  verse,  savs,  '  And  I  saw  a  new  heaven  and  a  new  earth, 
for  the  first  heaven  and  the  first  earth  had  passed  away,  and  there 
was  no  more  sea.'  Now,  if  there  is  to  be  no  sea,  how  can  the  new 
earlli  be  divided  into  continents.''  But  the  Mormons  say  there  are 
to  ba  two  Jerusalenis,  one  on  the  eastern  and  tiie  other  on  the  west- 
ern continent.  John  goes  nn  to  say,  '  And  I  saw  the  holy  city,  new 
Jerusalem,  coming  down  from  God  out  of  heaven,  prepared  as  a 
bride  adorned  for  her  husband.'  He  does  not  say  that  the  city  was 
caught  up  into  heaven,  brick  houses  and  all  made  by  men,  and  then 
let  down  again,  as  the  Mormons  have  it,  but,  '  I  saw  the  city  (not 
two  cities)  coining  down  from  God,'  on  the  line  earth.  Further,  in 
the  same  chapter,  22d  verse,  he  says,  '  And  I  saw  no  temple  therein, 
for  the  Lord  God  Almighty  and  the  Lamb  are  the  temple  of  it.' 
Now,  in  the  revelation  giving  directions  for  building  the  Mormon 
new  Jerusalem,  they  are  to  build  a  Temple,  &c.,  and,  according  to 
Pratt's  account,  the  cities  are  to  be  caught  up  into  heaven,  and  are 
to  be  let  down  after  the  earth  is  renewed  ;  of  course,  there  are  to  be 
temples  literally  speaking.  A  great  number  of  other  passages  might 
be  quoted,  to  show  the  dissimilarity  between  the  Mormon  Paradise 
and  that  which  is  described  in  the  Scriptures;  but  enough  has  been 
said  to  prove  theirs  a  mere  invention  of  the  imagination." 

Mormonism  Portrayed,  by  William  Harris,  pp.  23 — 25. 


HISTORY    OF    THE    MORMONS.  133 

HISTORY  OF   THE  MORJVIOxNS. 

Mr.  Harris  observes,  — 

"  An  account  of  the  origin  of  Smith,  the  discovery  of  the  plates, 
and  their  translation,  will  be  found  in  another  portion  of  this  work  ; 
1  shall  therefore  confine  myself  more  particularly,  in  this  chapter,  to 
the  history  of  the  Mormon,  Churcli,  with  a  view  thereby  more  fully 
to  illustrate  its  character.  { Its  first  organization,  with  only  six  mem- 
bers, was  shortly  after  the  publication  of  the  Book  of  Mormon,  in 
1830.  These  first  members,  consisting  mostly  of  persons  who  were 
engaged  with  Smith  in  the  translation  of  the  plates,  forthwith  set 
theiuselves  with  great  zeal  to  building-  up  tlie  Church.  Tlieir  first 
eflx)rts  were  confined  to  Western  New  York  and  Pennsylvania,  where 
they  met  with  considerable  success.  After  a  number  of  converts 
had  been  made,  Smith  received  a  revelation,  that  he  and  all  his 
followers  should  go  to  Kirtland,  Ohio,  and  there  take  up  their  abode. 
Many  obeyed  tills  command,  selling  their  possessions,  and  helping 
eacJi  other  to  settle  in  the  spot  designated.  This  place  was  the  head- 
quarters of  the  Cliurch,  and  the  residence  of  the  Prophet,  until  1838; 
but  it  does  not  appear  tliat  they  ever  regarded  it  as  a  place  of  per- 
manent settlement!  for  in  Book  of  Covenants,  page  150,  it  is  said,  in 
speaking  of  Kirtlamd,  'I  consecrate  this  land  unto  them  for  a  little 
season,  until  I  the  Lord  provide  for  them  to  go  hence.' 

I"  In  the  spring  of  1631,  Smith,  Rigdon,  and  others,  were  directed, 
by  revelation,  (see  Book  of  Covenants,  page  11)3,)  to  go  on  a  jounaey 
to  MissouriJand  there  the  Lord  was  to  show  them  the  place  of  the 
new  Jerusalem.  This  journey  was  accordingly  taken,  and  when 
they  aorived,  a  revelation  was  received,  (see  B.  C.,  p.  154,)  -jjointing 
out  the  town  of  Independence,  Jackson  county,  as  the  central  place  for 
the  Landof  Promise,  where  they  were  directed  to  build  a  temple,  «&c. ) 
Shortly  after  their  return  to  Kirtland,  a  number  of  revelations  were 
received,  commanding  tlie  Saints,  throughout  the  country,  to  pur- 
chase and  settle  in  this  Land  of  Promise.  Accordingly  many  went 
and  began  there  to  build  up  Zion,  as  they  called  it. 

"  In  the  mean  time.  Smith,  Rigdon,  &c.,  devoted  their  labors  in 
Kirtland  to  building  up  tliemselves  and  the  Church. 

"  In  1831,  a  consecration  law  was  established  in  the  church,  by 
revelation.  It  was  first  published  in  the  Book  of  Conjmandments, 
page  93,  and  in  the  Evening  and  Morning  Star,  1st  ed.,  No.  3,  Vol.  I. 
It  reads  thus  :  '  If  thou  lovest  me  thou  shalt  keep  my  command- 
ments, and  thou  shalt  consecrate  alL  of  thy  properties  unto  me,  with 
a  covenant  and  deed  which  cannot  be  broken.'  This  law,  however, 
has  been  republished,  in  the  Book  of  Covenants,  page  122,  and  in 
the  republication,  has  been  altered.  As  modified,  it  reads  thus  :  '  If 
thou  lovest  me  thou  shalt  serve  me  and  keep  all  of  my  command- 
ments, and  behold  thou  phalt  remember  t!ie  poor,  and  consecrate  of 
tiiy  properties  for  their  support  that  which  thou  hast  to  impart  unto 
them  with  a  covenant  and  deed,  which  cannot  be  broken.'  Let  me 
digress  for  one  moment,  and  ask  why  this  alteration.  It  does  ap- 
12 


134  HISTORY    OF    THE     SAINTS. 

pear  to  have  been  done  hy  command  of  God,  but  purports  to  be 
the  same  revelation  as  was  first  pubhshed.  This  is  demonstration 
that  Smith  makes  and  alters  revelations,  to  suit  his  own  purposes. 

"  Tlie  details  of  this  consecration  law  will  be  found  in  Book  of 
Covenants,  page  150,  and  reads  thus :  '  Hearken  unto  me,  saith  the 
Lord  your  God,  and  I  will  speak  unto  my  servant  Edward  Patridge, 
and  give  unto  him  directions ;  for  it  must  needs  be  that  he  have 
directions  how  to  organize  the  people ;  for  it  must  needs  be  tliat 
they  are  organized  according  to  my  laws.  If  otherwise,  they  will 
be  cut  off;  wherefore  let  my  servant  Edward  Patridge,  and  those 
whom  he  has  chosen  in  whom  I  am  well  pleased,  appoint  unto  this 
people  their  portion,  every  man  equal  according  to  their  families, 
according  to  circumstances,  and  their  wants  and  needs;  and  let  my 
servant  Edward  Patridge,  when  he  shall  appoint  a  man  his  portion, 
give  unto  him  a  writing,  that  shall  secure  unto  liim  his  portion,  that 
he  shall  hold  it,  even  this  right  and  this  inheritance  in  the  Church, 
until  he  transgresses  and  is  not  accounted  worthy  by  the  voice  of 
the  Church,  to  belong  to  the  Church,  according  to  the  laws  and 
covenants  of  the  Church  ;  and  if  he  shall  transgress  and  is  not  ac- 
counted worthy  to  belong  to  the  Church,  he  shall  not  have  power  to 
claim  that  portion  which  he  has  consecrated  unto  the  Bishop,  for 
the  poor  and  the  needy  of  my  Church,  therefore  he  shall  not  retain 
the  gift,  but  shall  only  have  claim  to  that  portion  which  is  deeded 
unto  him.  —  And  thus  all  things  shall  be  made  sure  according  to  the 
laws  of  the  land. 

"'And  let  that  which  belongs  to  this  people,  be  appointed  unto 
this  people,  and  the  money  which  is  left  unto  this  people,  let  there 
be  an  agent  appointed  unto  this  people,  to  take  the  money  to  pro- 
vide food  and  raiment  according  to  the  wants  of  this  people.  And 
let  every  man  deal  honestly  and  be  alike  amongst  this  people,  and 
receive  alike,  that  he  may  be  even  as  I  have  commanded  you. 

"  '  And  let  that  which  bclongeth  to  this  people  not  be  taken  and 
given  unto  that  of  another  church  :  wherefore  if  another  church 
would  receive  money  of  this  Church,  let  them  pay  unto  this  Church 
according  as  they  shall  agree,  and  this  shall  be  done  through  the 
Bishop  or  the  agent,  which  shall  be  appointed  by  the  voice  °of  the 
Church.' 

"  And  again,  '  Let  the  Bishop  appoint  a  storehouse  unto  this 
Church,  and  let  all  things  both  in  money  and  in  meat,  which  is  more 
than  is  needful  for  the  wants  of  this  people,  be  kept  in  the  hands  of 
the  Bishop.  And  let  him  also  reserve  unto  himself  for  the  wants  of 
his  family,  as  he  shall  be  employed  in  doing  this  business.'  Again, 
speaking  of  this  law,  'Behold,  this  shall  be  an  example  unto' my 
servant  Edward  Patridge  in  other  places,  in  all  churches,  and  whoso 
is  found  a  faithful,  a  just,  and  wise  steward,  shall  enter  into  the  joy 
of  his  Lord,  and  shall  inherit  eternal  life.  Verily  I  say  unto  you,  I 
am  Jesus  Christ,  who  cometh  quickly,  in  an  hour  you  think  not; 
even  so.  Amen.' 

"  The  penalty  attached  to  a  breach  of  this  law  will  be  found  in 
the  Book  of  Covenants,  page  'Ml,  thus:  'Therefore,  if  any  man 
shall  take  of  the  abundance  which  I  have  made,  and  impart  not  his 


HISTORY    OF    THE    MORMONS.  135 

portion,  according  to  the  law  of  the  gospel,  unto  tlie  poor  and  the 
needy,  he  shall  with  the  wicked  lift  up  his  eyes  in  hell,  being  in 
torment.' 

"  These  were  the  provisions  of  the  consecration  laws,  which,  so 
far  as  I  am  informed,  are  yet  unrepealed.  They  have  never,  how- 
ever, been  put  in  full  operation ;  because  the  people  would  not  sufft-r 
it.  The  whole  scheme  %\5as  evidently  designed  for  the  benefit  of 
Smith  &  Co.,  as  will  more  fully  appear  by  what  follows. 

"In  April,  1832,  a  firm  was  established  by  revelation,  ostensibly 
for  the  benefit  of  the  Church,  consisting  of  the  principal  members 
in  Kirlland  and  in  Independence.  (See  B.  C,  pages-  21U  and  ^'^O.) 
The  members  of  this  firm  were  bound  together  by  an  oath  and  cov- 
enant, to  '  manage  the  affairs  of  the  poor,  and  all  things  pertaining 
to  the  bishopric,  both  inZion  (INIissouri)  and  in  Shinahar  (Kirtland.) 
According  to  the  consecration  law,  above  quoted,  the  Bishop  was  to 
have  charge  of  all  consecrated  property,  also  to  have  charge  of  the 
storehouse  of  the  Church;  consequently, ^as  this  firm  superseded  the 
Bishop,  it  had  charge  of  all  the  consecrated  property.  In  June,  1833, 
a  revelation  was  received  to  lay  off  Kirtland  in  lots,  and  the  pro- 
ceeds of  the  sale  v/ere  to  go  to  this  firm,  (B.  C,  p.  234.)  In  1834  or 
'5,  the  firm  was  divided  by  revelation,  (B.  C,  240,)  so  that  those  in 
Kirtland  continued  as  one  firm,  and  those  in  Missouri  as  another. 
In  the  same  revelation,  they  are  commanded  to  divide  the  conse- 
crated property  between  the  individuals  of  the  firm,  which  each 
separately  were  to  manage  as  stewards.  Previous  to  this,  in  1833,  a 
revelation  was  received  to  build  a  temple,  (B.  C,  p.  213,)  which  was 
to  be  done  by  the  consecrated  funds  in  the  management  of  the  firm. 
In  putting  up  this  structure,  the  firm  involved  itself  in  debt  to  a  large 
amount ;  wherefore,  in  the  revelation  last  mentioned  above,  the  fol- 
lowing appears:  '  Inasmuch  as  ye  are  humble  and  faithful,  and  call 
on  my  name,  behold  I  will  give  you  the  victory,  I  give  unto  you  a 
promise  that  you  shall  be  delivered  this  once  out  of  your  bondage, 
inasmuch  as  you  obtain  a  chance  to  loan  money  by  hundreds  and 
thousands,  even  till  you  have  obtained  enough  to  deliver  yourselves 
out  of  bondage.'  This  was  a  command  to  borrow  money,  in  order 
to  free  themselves  from  the  debt  that  oppressed  them.  They  made 
the  attempt,  but  failed  to  get  sufficient  to  satisfy  their  purposes. 
This  led  to  another  expedient. 

"  In  1835,  Smith,  Rigdon,  and  others,  formed  a  mercantile  house, 
and  purchased  goods  in  Cleveland  and  in  Buffalo,  to  a  very  large 
amount,  on  a  credit  of  six  months.  In  the  fall,  other  houses  were 
formed,  and  goods  purchased  in  the  eastern  cities  to  a  still  greater 
amount.  A  great  part  of  the  goods  of  these  houses  went  to  pay  the 
workmen  on  the  Temple,  and  many  were  sold  on  credit,  so  that 
when  the  notes  became  due,  the  houses  were  not  able  to  meet  them. 
Smith,  Rigdon,  tfc  Co.,  then  attempted  to  borrow  money,  by  issuing 
their  notes  payable  at  different  periods  after  date.  This  expedient 
not  being  effectual,  the  idea  of  a  Bank  suggested  itself.  Accord- 
ingly, in  J337,  the  far-famed  Kirtland  Bank  was  put  into  operation, 
without  charter.  This  institution,  by  v.'hich  so  many  have  been 
swindled,  was  formed  after  the  following  manner :    Subscribers  for 


136  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

stock  were  allowed  to  pay  the  amount  of  their  subscriptions  in  town 
lots,  at  five  or  six  times  their  real  value  ;  others  paid  in  personal 
property,  at  a  high  valuation;  and  some  paid  the  cash.  When  tlie 
notes  were  first  issued,  they  were  current  in  the  vicinity,  and  Smith 
took  advantage  of  their  credit  to  pay  ofi',  with  them,  the  debts  he 
and  tlie  brethren  had  contracted  in  the  neighborhood,  for  land,  &c. 
The  eastern  creditors,  however,  refused  to  take  them.  This  led  to 
the  expedient  of  exchanging  them  for  the  notes  of  other  banks. 
Accordingly,  the  elders  were  sent  oiF  the  country  to  barter  oiF  Kirt- 
land  money,  which  they  did  with  great  zeal,  and  continued  the 
operation,  until  the  notes  were  not  worth  twelve  and  a  half  cents  to 
the  dollar.  As  might  have  been  expected,  this  institution,  after  a  few 
months,  exploded,  involving  Smith  and  his  brethren  in  inextricable 
difliculties.  The  consequence  was,  that  he  and  most  of  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Church  set  ofi",  in  the  spring  of  1838,  for  Far  West,  Mo., 
being  pursued  by  their  creditors,  but  to  no  effect. 

"  1  will  now  go  back  for  a  short  period.  In  1836,  an  endowment 
meeting,  or  solemn  assembly,  was  called,  to  be  held  m  the  Temple 
at  Kirtland.  It  was  given  out  that  those  who  were  in  attendance  at 
the  meeting  should  receive  an  endowment,  or  blessing,  similar  to 
tha*.  experienced  by  the  disciples  of  Christ  on  the  day  of  Pentecost. 
When  the  day  arrived,  great  numbers  convened  from  the  different 
Churches  in  the  country.  They  spent  the  day  in  fasting  and  prayer, 
and  in  washing  and  perfuming  their  bodies  ;  they  also  washed  their 
feet,  and  anointed  their  heads  with  what  they  called  holy  oil,  and 
pronounced  blessings.  In  the  evening,  they  met  for  the  endow- 
ment. The  fast  was  then  broken  by  eating  light  wheat  bread,  and 
drinking  as  much  wine  as  they  saw  proper.  Smith  knew  well  how 
to  infuse  the  spirit  which  they  expected  to  receive  ;  so  he  encour- 
aged the  brethren  to  drink  freely,  telling  them  that  the  wine  was 
consecrated,  and  would  not  make  them  drunk.  As  may  be  sup- 
posed, they  drank  to  the  purpose.  After  this,  they  began  to  prophe- 
sy, pronouncing  blessings  upon  their  friends,  and  curses  upon  their 
enemies.  If  I  should  be  so  unhappy  as  to  go  to  the  regions  of  the 
damned,  1  never  expect  to  hear  language  more  awful,  or  more  be- 
coming the  infernal  pit,  than  was  uttered  that  night.  The  curses 
were  pronounced  principally  upon  the  clergy  of  the  present  day,  and 
upon  the  Jackson  county  mob  in  Missouri.  After  spending  the 
night  in  alternate  blessings  and  cursings,  the  meeting  adjourned. 

"  1  now  return  to  Missouri.  The  Mormons  who  had  settled  in 
and  about  Independence,  having  become  very  arrogant,  claiming  the 
land  as  their  own,  —  saying  the  Lord  had  given  it  to  them,  —  and 
making  the  most  haughty  assumptions,  so  exasperated  tlie  old  citi- 
zens, that  a  mob  was  raised,  in  1833,  and  expelled  the  whole  Mormon 
body  from  the  county.  They  fled  to  Clay  county,  where  the  citi- 
zens permitted  them  to  live  in  quiet,  until  1836,  when  a  mob  spirit 
began  to  manifest  itself,  and  the  Mormons  retired  to  a  very  thinly 
settled  district  of  the  country,  where  they  began  to  make  improve- 
ments. This  district  was,  at  the  session  of  1836-7  of  the  Missouri 
Legislature,  erected  into  a  county,  by  the  name  of  Caldwell,  with 
Far  West  for  its   county  seat.      Here  the  Mormons  remained  in 


HISTORY   OF    THE    MORMONS.  137 

quiet,  until  after  the  Bank  explosion  in  Kirtland,  in  1833,  when 
■Smith,  Rigdon,  &c.  arrived.  Shortly  after  tliis,  tlie  Danite  Society 
was  organized,  —  the  object  of  whicli,  at  first,  was  to  drive  tlie  dis- 
senters out  of  the  county.  The  members  of  this  society  were  bound 
togellicr  by  an  oath  and  covenant,  with  the  penalty  of  death  attached 
to  a  breach,  to  defend  the  Presidency,  and  each  other,  unto  death, — 
riglit  or  wrong.  They  had  their  secret  signs,  by  which  tliey  knew 
each  other,  either  by  day  or  night ;  and  were  divided  into  bands  of 
tens  and  fifties,  with  a  captain  over  each  band,  and  a  general  over 
the  whole.  After  this  body  was  formed,  notice  was  given  to  several 
of  the  dissenters  to  leave  the  county,  and  they  were  threatened 
severely,  in  case  of  disobedience.  The  etfect  of  this  was,  that  many 
of  the  dissenters  left ;  amongut  these  were  David  Whitmer,  Jolin 
Whitmer,  Hiram  Page,  and  Oliver  Cowdery,  all  witnesses  to  the 
Book  of  Mormon,  also  Lyman  Johnson,  one  of  the  Twelve  Apostles. 
Tlie  day  after  John  Whitmer  left  his  liouse  in  Far  West,  it  was 
taken  possession  of  by  Sidney  Rigdon.  About  lliis  time,  P>.igdon 
preached  his  famous  'salt  sermon.'  The  te.xt  V\"as  —  'Ye  are  the 
salt  of  the  earth,  but  if  the  salt  have  lost  its  savor,  wherewith  shall 
it  be  salted;  it  is  thenceforth  good  for  nothing,  but  to  be  cast  out, 
and  to  be  trodden  under  foot  of  men.'  He  informed  the  Mormons 
that  the  Church  was  the  salt,  that  dissenters  were  the  salt  that  had  lost 
its  savor,  and  that  they  were  literally  to  be  trodden  under  the  feet 
of  the  Church,  until  their  bowels  should  be  gushed  out.  In  order  to 
give  weight  to  this  interpretation,  he  attempted  to  sustain  his  posi- 
tion from  the  Bible  !  He  referred  to  the  case  of  Judas,  informing  the 
people  that  he  did  not  fall  headlong  and  his  bowels  gusli  out,  with- 
out assistance,  but  that  the  apostles  threw  him,  and  with  their  feet 
trampled  them  out !  He  also  said  that  Ananias  and  Sapphira,  his 
wife,  did  not  fall  down  dead,  as  translated  ;  but  that  Peter  and  John 
slew  them,  and  the  j'oung  men,  or  deacons,  carried  them  out  and 
buried  them. 

"  In  one  of  tiie  meetings  of  the  Danite  Band,  one  of  the  leaders 
informed  them  that  the  time  was  not  far  distant,  when  the  elders  of 
the  Church  should  go  forth  to  tlie  world  with  swords  at  their  sides, 
and  that  they  would  soon  have  to  go  through  the  State  of  Missouri, 
and  slay  every  man,  woman,  and  child  !  They  had  it  in  contempla- 
tion, at  one  time,  to  prophesy  a  dreadful  pestilence  in  Missouri,  and 
tlien  to  poison  the  waters  of  the  State,  to  bring  it  about,  and  thus  to 
destroy  the  inhabitants. 

"  In  the  early  jiart  of  the  fall  of  the  year  1838,  the  last  disturb- 
ance between  the  Mormons  and  the  MisSourians  commenced.  It 
had  its  origin  at  an  election  in  Daviess  county,  where  some  of  the 
Mormons  had  located.  A  citizen  of  Daviess,  in  conversation  with  a 
Mormon,  remarked  that  the  Mormons  all  voted  one  way  :  this  was 
with  warmth  denied.  A  violent  contest  ensued ;  when  at  last  the 
Mormon  called  the  Missourian  a  liar.  Upon  this  the  Missourian 
struck  him.  A  row  between  the  Mormons  and  Missourians  fol- 
lowed. 

"  A  day  or  two  after  this.  Smith,  witli  a  company  of  men  from 
Far  West,  went  into  Daviess  county,  for  the  purpose,  as  they  said, 
12* 


138  HISTOKY  OF   THE    SAINTS. 

to  quell  the  mob ;  but  when  they  arrived,  there  was  no  mob  there. 
This  excited  the  citizens  of  Daviess,  and  they  gathered  in  turn.  But 
the  Mormons  soon  collected  a  force  to  the  amount  of  three  or  four 
hundred,  and  compelled  the  citizens  to  retire.  They  lied,  leaving 
the  country  deserted  for  a  number  of  miles  around.  At  this  time 
they  killed  between  one  and  two  hundred  hogs,  a  number  of  cattle, 
took  at  least  forty  or  fifty  stands  of  honey,  and  at  the  same  time 
destroyed  several  fields  of  corn.  The  word  was  out,  that  the  Lord 
had  consecrated,  through  the  Bishop,  the  spoils  unto  his  host.  All 
this  was  done  when  they  had  plenty  of  their  own,  and  previous  to 
the  citizens  in  that  section  of  the  country  taking  aught  of  theirs. 
They  continued  these  depredations  for  near  a  week,  when  the  Clay 
county  militia  were  ordered  out.  The  history  of  what  followed  will 
be  found  in  another  chapter.  Suffice  it  to  say,  here,  that  Smith,  Rig- 
don,  and  many  others,  were  finally  taken,  and  at  a  court  of  inquiry 
were  remanded  over  for  trial.  Rigdon  was  afterwards  discharged 
on  habeas  corpus,  and  Smith  and  his  comrades,  after  being  in  prison 
several  months,  escaped  from  their  guards,  and  reached  Quincy, 
Illinois.  The  Mormons  had  been  before  ordered  to  leave  the  State, 
by  direction  of  the  Governor  ;  and  many  had  retired  to  Illinois  pre- 
vious to  Smith's  arrival. 

"  Of  this  Missouri  war,  as  it  has  been  called,  a  great  deal  has  been 
said,  and  public  opinion,  at  the  time,  generally  censured  the  conduct 
of  Missouri.  That  the  Missourians  carried  the  matter  too  far,  and 
treated  the  Mormons  with  an  unnecessary  degree  of  cruelty,  in 
many  instances,  there  can  be  no  doubt;  but  that  there  was  great 
cause  of  aggravation,  tliere  can  be  just  as  little.  The  truth  is,  that 
while  the  Mormon  body,  as  a  church,  interfere  with  the  pecuniary 
and  political  acts  of  its  members,  assuming  the  sole  direction  of 
both,  it  will  be  impossible  for  them  to  live  in  peace  in  any  commu- 
nity. The  necessary  consequence  of  their  regarding  the  words  of 
Smith  as  the  words  of  the  Lord,  is,  that  he  can  unite  them  when- 
ever it  may  be  necessary  to  efi'ect  his  purposes.  This,  probably, 
would  produce  no  jealousy,  if  his  acts  were  confined  to  ecclesiastical 
government;  but  when  they  extend  to  controlling  the  political  and 
pecuniary  interests  of  his  followers,  it  must  inevitably  produce  dis- 
trust and  enmity.  Such  a  community,  thus  united,  hold  the  rights 
of  the  neighboring  citizens  in  their  own  hands  ;  and  in  every  con- 
test they  must  come  off  victors.  They  have  a  capacity  for  secrecy, 
which  enables  them  to  commit  any  act  of  depredation,  witliout  the 
fear  of  detection  ;  and  when  a  crime  has  been  committed  by  one  of 
them,  they  are  so  united  to  each  other's  interests,  as  to  render  it 
almost  impossible,  through  a  legal  formula,  to  obtain  a  conviction. 
Is  it  any  wonder,  then,  that  a  body  thus  controlled  —  their  interest 
confined  within  themselves,  and  inimical  in  its  nature  to  that  of  the 
other  citizens  —  should  excite  jealousy  ?  And  when  we  consider  the 
materials  of  which  the  Church  is  made,  the  amount  of  ignorance, 
bigotry,  and  arrogance,  that  is  displayed  by  its  members,  is  it  at  all 
surprising  that  an  explosion  should  take  place  between  them  and 
those  by  whom  they  arc  surrounded  ?  Now,  even  admitting  that 
the  Mormons  were  honest,  yet,  taking  all  things  into  consideration, 


HISTORY    OF    THE    MORMONS.  139 

the  Missourians  acted,  in.  the  commencement  of  the  difRculties,  as 
would  ahaost  any  community  in  the  country.  I  do  not  justify  their 
mobs  ;  on  the  contrar}^,  1  say  that  a  mob  in  no  case  is  justifiable  ; 
but  I  do  say  that,  as  society  is  now  constituted,  mobs  will  arise, 
under  certain  circumstances,  in  any  community.  Let,  then,  those 
who  have  regarded  the  Missourians  as  a  set  of  unprinci[)led  despera- 
does, because  of  their  conduct  towards  the  Mormons,  bethink  thein, 
tliat  the  same  scenes,  under  the  same  circumstances,  would,  in  all 
probability,  have  been  enacted  in  their  own  neiarhborhoods.  It  wag 
not  the  mere  religion  of  the  Mormons,  that  exasperated  the  Missou- 
rians; it  was  their  arrogance,  —  their  united  purpose  to  protect  each 
other,  and  to  infrino-e  on  the  ric-hts  of  other  citizens,  —  their  theits, 
and  their  concealments  ot  eacli  other  s  cranes.  These  were  all, 
under  the  circumstances,  injuries  without  legal  remedies  ;  and,  al- 
though this  does  not  justify  a  mob,  yet  there  are  few  communities 
in  this  country,  that  would  not,  if  placed  in  the  same  situation,  have 
been  exasperated  to  violence. 

"  The  Mormons,  as  a  body,  arrived  in  Illinois  in  the  early  part  of 
the  year  1839.  At  tliis  time  they  presented  a  spectacle  of  destitu- 
tion and  wretchedness  almost  unexampled.  This,  together  with 
their  tales  of  persecution  and  privation,  wrought  powerfully  upon 
the  sympathies  of  the  citizens,  and  caused  them  to  be  received  with 
the  greatest  hospitality  and  kindness.  After  the  arrival  of  Smith, 
the  greater  part  of  them  settled  at  Commerce,  situated  on  the  Mis- 
sissippi River,  at  the  head  of  the  Des  Moines,  or  Lower  Rapids,  —  a 
site  equal  in  beauty  to  any  on  the  river.  Here  they  began  to  build 
their  habitations,  and  in  the  short  space  of  two  years  have  raised 
quite  a  city.  At  first,  as  was  before  said,  on  account  of  their  former 
sufferings,  and  also  of  the  great  political  power  which  they  pos- 
sessed, they  were  treated  by  the  citizens  of  Illinois  with  great  re- 
spect; but  subsequent  events  have  served  to  turn  the  tide  of  feelinor 
against  them.  In  the  winter  of  1840,  they  applied  to  the  Legislature 
of  the  State  for  several  charters  —  one  for  the  city  of  Nauvoo,  the 
name  Smith  had  given  to  the  town  of  Commerce,  —  one  for  the 
Nauvoo  Legion,  a  military  body,  —  one  for  manufacturing  purposes, 
—  and  one  for  a  University.  The  privileges  which  they  asked  for 
were  very  extensive ;  and  such  was  the  desire  to  secure  their  politi- 
cal favor,  that  they  were  granted  for  the  mere  asking.  Indeed  the 
great  ones  of  our  Legislature  seemed  to  vie  with  each  other  in  syco- 
phancy to  this  set  of  fanatical  strangers,  —  so  anxious  was  each 
party  to  do  some  act  that  would  secure  their  gratitude.  This,  to- 
gether with  the  sycophancy  of  office-seekers,  tended  to  produce 
jealousy  in  the  minds  of  the  neighboring  citizens,  and  fears  were 
expressed,  lest  a  body,  so  united,  both  religiously  and  politicall}'-, 
would  become  dangerous  to  our  free  institutions.  The  Mormons 
had  nearly  all  voted  at  every  election  with  their  leaders,  and  evi- 
dently under  their  direction ;  this  alone  made  them  formidable.  The 
Legion  had  got  under  its  direction  a  great  portion  of  the  arms  of  the 
State,  and  the  whole  body  was  placed  under  the  strictest  military 
discipline.  These  things,  together  with  complaints  similar  to  those 
which  were  made  in  Missouri,  tended  to  arouse  a  strong  feeling 
against  them ;  when  at  last,  in  tke  early  part  of  the  summer  oS 


140  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

ISJl,  a  political  move  was  made  by  them,  and  the  citizens  organ- 
ized a  party  in  opposition.  The  Mormons  were  beaten  m  the  con- 
test. The  disposition  now  manifested  by  the  citizens  appears  to  be, 
to  act  on  the  defensive  ;  but  to  maintain  their  rights  at  all  hazards. 
If  the  Mormons  consent  to  act  as  other  citizens,  they  will  not  be  mo- 
lested on  account  of  their  religion  ;  bufe  freemen  will  not  submit  to 
be  trampled  on  by  an  organized  body  of  men,  no  matter  by  what 
name  they  are  called,  or  whose  standard  they  follow. 

"  As  reo-ards  the  pecuniary  transactions  of  the  Mormons,  smce 
they  haveljeen  in  lUhiois,—  Smith  still  uses  his  power  for  his  own 
benefit.  His  present  operations  are  to  purchase  land  at  a  low 
rate,  lay  it  off  into  town  lots,  and  sell  them  at  a  liigh  price  to  his 
followers.  Thus,  lots  that  scarcely  cost  him  a  dollar,  are  frequently 
sold  for  a  thousand.  He  has  made  several  towns  in  this  manner, 
both  in  Iowa  and  in  Illinois.  ,  •    -7  i 

"  During  the  last  year,  he  has  made  two  proclamations  to  his  tol- 
lowers  abroad,  to  settle  in  the  county  of  Hancock.  These  proclama- 
tions have  been  to  a  great  extent  obeyed,  and  hundreds  are  now 
flockino-  in,  from  the  Eastern  States,  and  from  England.  What  is 
to  be  the  result  of  all  this,  I  am  not  able  to  tell ;  but  one  thing  is 
certain,  — that,  in  a  political  point  of  view,  tiie  Mormons  are  already 
dancrerous ;  and  as  a  consequence,  they  will  be  watched  with  jeal- 
ousy by  their  neighbors."  . 

Morinonism  Portrayed,  by  JVdliam  Harris,  pp.  .<i«— Jb 


THE  DESIGNS  OF   MORMONISM. 

Mr.  Harris  remarks, — 

"  The  designs  of  Smith  and  his  coadjutors,  at  the  time  of  the  hrst 
publication  of  the  Book  of  Mormon,  was,  doubtlessly,  nothing  more 
than  pecuniary  ao-trrandizement.  I  do  not  believe,  at  that  time,  they 
expected  that  so  many  could  ever  be  duped  to  admit  it  true.  When, 
however,  the  delusion  began  to  spread,  the  publishers  saw  the  door 
opened  not  only  for  wealth,  but  also  for  extensive  power  ;  and  their 
history  throughout  shows  that  they  have  not  been  remiss  in  their 
efforts  to  acquire  both.  The  extent  of  their  desires  is  now  by  no 
means  limited,  for  their  writings  and  actions  show  a  design  to  pursue 
the  same  path,  and  attain  the  same  end  by  the  same  means,  as  did 
Mahomet  The  idea  of  a  second  Mahomet  arising  in  the  nineteenth 
centurv,  mav  excite  a  smile ;  but  when  we  consider  the  steps  now 
takin</by  the  Mormons  to  concentrate  their  numbers,  and  their 
ultimate  design  to  unite  themselves  with  the  Indians,  it  will  not  be 
at  all  surprising,  if  scenes  unheard  of  since  the  days  of  feudalism 
should  soon  be  reiinacted.  _ 

"In   the  first  place.  Smith, by  proclamations  and  by  revelations, 
has  called  all  his  followers  to  settle  immediately  around  him.     The 


THE    DESIGNS    OF    MORMONISM.  141 

last  revelation  on  tliis  subject  is  published  in  the  Times  and 
Seasons  dated  June  1,  1841,  from  which  T  extract  the  followinor: 
'Awake!  O!  Kings  of  the  Earth!  Come  ye,  O!  Come  j'e,  with 
3'our  gold  and  your  silver,  to  the  help  of  my  people,  to  the  house  of 
the  Daughter  of  Zion,  *  *  *.  And  again,  verily  I  say  unto  you,  let  all 
my  Saints  come  fi-om  afar ;  and  send  ye  swift  messengers,  yea,  chosen 
messengers,  and  say  unto  them,  come  ye  with  all  your  gold,  and 
your  silver,  and  your  precious  stones,  and  with  your  antiquities,'  »fcc. 
They  are  further  informed,  in  the  course  of  this  revelation,  that  alter 
sufficient  time  has  been  allowed  to  build  a  baptisinal  font  at  A'auvoo, 
their  baptisms  for  tlie  dead  shall  not  be  acceptable  in  other  places. 
TJie  object  of  Smitli,  in  all  this,  is  evidently  to  collect  all  his  fol- 
lowers into  one  place,  aiid  thus  to  concentrate  all  his  power,  and 
enable  him  the  better  to  secure  wealth. 

"  These  quotations  and  statements  are  introduced  to  show  that 
they  are  concentrating  all  their  energies  at  one  point,  and  lliat  they 
teach  their  proselytes  that  it  is  the  will  of  God  that  they  should  thus 
concentrate  themselves.  In  accordance  with  this,  I  wish  to  make 
a  few  remarks  :  First,  it  is  a  notorious  fact  tliat  they  (the  Mormons) 
are  gathering  from  every  part  of  the  world,  and  all  their  teachers 
are  mstructed,  by  revelation,  to  gather  them  together  at  Nauvoo. 
Secondly,  they  have  obtained  an  act  of  the  Legislature,  organizing 
the  '  Nauvoo  Legion,'  (which  may  be  increased  to  an  indefinite 
number,)  liave  obtained  arms  of  the  government,  and  are  at  this 
time  more  than  one  thousand  strong,  and  increasing  continually. 
Now,  I  ask,  why  all  this  gathering,  so  dilFerent  from  every  other 
denomination,  unless  they  have  designs  against  the  rights  and  liber- 
ties of  others.-'  Why  are  they  using  their  best  exertions  for,  and 
actually  raising  up,  a  large,  well-drilled,  well-armed,  standing  army  ? 
There  can  be  no  religion  in  this,  every  one  knows;  and  hence  it  fol- 
lows that  they  are  not  only  contemplating,  but  actually  preparing 
for,  the  execution  of  some  murderous  design.  But  as  an  illustration 
of  what  they  intend  to  do,  I  make  the  following  extracts  from  Rig- 
don's  oration,  delivered  at  Far  West,  July  4,  lri38,  and  from  their 
standard  writings. 

"  In  his  oration,  Mr.  Rigdon  said,  '  We  take  God  and  all  the 
holy  angels  to  witness  this  day,  that  we  warn  all  men  in  the  name 
of  Jesus  Christ,  to  come  on  us  no  more  forever.  The  man,  or  the 
set  of  men,  who  attempts  it,  does  it  at  the  expense  of  their  lives. 
And  that  mob  that  conies  on  us  to  disturb  us,  it  shall  be  between 
us  and  them  a  war  oi'  extermination,  for  we  will  follow  them  till  the 
last  drop  of  their  blood  is  spilled,  or  else  they  will  have  to  exter- 
minate us.  For  we  will  carry  the  seat  of  war  to  their  own  houses, 
and  their  own  families,  and  one  party  or  the  other  shall  be  utterly 
destroj-ed.  Remember  it,  then,  all  men.  *  *  *  No  man  shall  be  at 
liberty  to  come  into  our  streets,  to  threaten  us  with  mobs;  for  if 
he  does,  he  shall  atone  for  it  before  he  leaves  the  place;  neither 
shall  he  be  at  liberty  to  vilify  and  slander  any  of  us,  for  suffer  it 
we  will  not  in  this  place.  We,  therefore,  take  all  men  to  record 
this  day,  as  did  our  fathers.  And  we  pledge  this  day  to  one  an- 
other our  fortunes,  our  lives,  and  our  sacred  honors,  to  be  delivered 
from  the  persecutions  which  we  have  had  to  endure,  for  the  last 


142  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

nine  years,  or  nearly  that.  Neither  -will  we  indulge  any  man,  or 
Bet  of  men,  in  instituting  vexatious  lawsuits  against  Us,  to  cheat  us 
out  of  our  just  rigiits  ;  iftliey  attempt  it,  we  say  woe  be  unto  them. 
We  this  day,  then,  proclaim  ourselves  free,  with  a  purpose  and  a 
determination,  that  can  never  be  broken,  —  j\'o,JYevc7- !  No,  Never  ! ! 
NO,  NEVER!!!' 

"  What  gives  this  testimony  the  more  importance  is  this  —  it  was 
uttered  son)e  time  previous  to  tiie  disturbance  in  Missouri,  in  which 
they  were  driven  away,  and  hence  shows,  conclusively,  that  Rigdon 
&  Co.  expected  a  disturbance,  which  could  only  have  arisen 
from  an  intention  to  act  in  such  a  manner,  that  the  Missourians 
would  not  bear  with  them.     But,  further  :  — 

"Book  of  Covenants,  page  191.  'Wherefore,  1  say  unto  you, 
that  I  have  sent  unto  you  mine  everlasting  Covenants,  (namely,  the 
Book  of  Mormon,)  even  that  which  was  from  the  beginning,  and 
that  which  I  have  promised  I  have  so  fulfilled,  and  the  nations  of  the 
earth  shall  hoioto  it;  and  if  not  of  themselves,  tkcij  shall  come  down; 
for  that  ichich  is  now  exalted  of  itself  shall  be  laid  loio  of  poiccr.' 
Also,  on  page  76,  '  Wherefore  the  voice  of  the  Lord  is  unto  the 
ends  of  the  earth,  that  all  that  will  hear  may ;  prepare  ye,  prepare 
ye,  for  that  which  is  to  come,  for  the  Lord  is  nigh;  and  the  anger 
of  the  Lord  is  kindled,  and  his  sword  is  sheathed  in  heaven,  and  it 
shall  fall  upon  the  inhabitants  of  the  earth ;  and  the  arm  of  the  Lord 
shall  be  revealed ;  and  the  day  conieth,  that  they  who  will  not  hear 
the  voice  of  his  servants,  neither  give  heed  to  the  words  of  the 
prophets  and  apostles,  shall  be  cut  off  from  among  the  people.' 
Also,  on  page  95,  (perhaps  it  ought  to  be  remarked  here,  that  in  all 
their  revelations,  and  by  all  their  declaimers,  they  represent  them- 
selves and  Indians  as  the  instruments  by  which  these  desolations  are 
to  be  brought  about,)  '  Go  ye  fortli,  as  your  circumstances  shall  per- 
mit, in  your  several  callings,  unto  the  great  and  notable  cities 
and  villages,  reproving  the  world  in  righteousness  of  all  their 
unrighteous  and  ungodly  deeds,  setting  forth  clearly  and  understand- 
ingl}^,  the  desolation  of  abomination  in  the  last  days;  fo?-  zcith  you^ 
saith  the  Lord  Mmighty,  I  imll  rend  their  kingdoms.'  Also,  page 
117,  'Wherefore,  I  have  called  upon  the  weak  things  of  the  world, 
those  who  are  unlearned  and  despised,  to  thrash  the  nations  by  the 
power  of  my  spirit;  and  their  arm  shall  be  my  arm,  and  I  will  be 
their  shield  and  their  buckler,  and  I  will  gird  up  their  loins,  and 
they  shall  fight  manfully  for  me ;  and  their  enemies  shall  be  under 
their  feet ;  and  I  will  let  fall  the  sicord  in  their  behalf;  and  by  the 
fire  of  mine  indignation  will  I  preserve  them.' 

"  Voice  of  Warning,  by  Parley  P.  Pratt,  one  of  the  Twelve  Apos- 
tles, page  186:  'The  government  of  the  United  States  has  been 
engaged,  for  upwards  of  seven  years,  in  gathering  the  remnant  of 
Joseph  (the  Indians)  to  the  very  place  where  they  will  finally  build 
anew  Jerusalem;  a  city  of  Zion  ;  with  the  acquisition  of  the  be- 
lieving Gentiles,  v'ho  will  gather  with  them  from  all  the  nations  of 
the  earth;  and  this  gathering  is  clearly  predicted  in  the  Book  of 
Mormon,  and  other  revelations;  and  the  place  before  appointed,  and 
the  time  set  for  its  fulfilment;  and  except  the  Gentiles  repent  of  all 
their  abominations  and  embrace  the  same  Covenant,  (namely,  tli© 


THE    DESIGNS    OF    MORMONISM.  143 

Book  of  Mormon.)  and  come  into  the  same  place  of  gathering,  they 
tvill  soon  be  destroyed  from  off  the  face  of  the  latul ;  '  as  it  is  written 
by  Isaiah,  '  T!ie  nation  and  kingdom  that  will  not  serve  tiiee 
s'lall  perish.  Yea,  those  nations  shall  be  utterly  wasted.'  It  is 
further  stated,  in  the  same  work,  that  the  Indians  shall  be  gathered, 
and  that  they,  in  connection  with  the  Mormons,  shall  be  among  the 
Gentiles  as  '  a  young  lion  among  the  flock  of  sheep,  and  none  can 
deliver,'  and  that  the  Gentiles  (all  Anti-Mormons)  sliall  be  '  as  a 
thing  long  since  passed  away,  and  ihe  remembrance  of  it  almost 
gone  from  the  earth.' 

"But,  to  cap  the  climax,  read  the  following:   'All  who  will  not 
hearken  to  the  Book  of  Mormon,  shall  be  cut  off  from  amono'  the 
people  ;  and  that  too,  in  the  day  it  comes  forth  to  the  Gentiles  and 
is  rejected  by  them.'     And  not  only  does  this  page  set  the  time  for 
the  overthrow  of  our  government,  and  all  other  Gentile  goternmcjits 
on  the    American  Co.nti.ve.nt,    but    the    way   and    means   of  this 
utter  destruction  are  clearly  foretold  ;  namely,  tlie  remnant  of  Jacob 
(or  Indians)  will  go  throngli   among  the  Gentiles  and  tear  ihcm  in 
pieces  like  a  Hon  a.nong  the  flocks  of  sheep.     Their  hand  shall  be 
lifted  up  upon  their  adversaries,  and  all  their  enemies  shall  he  cut 
off.     This  destruction  includes  an  utter  overthrow,  and  desolation 
of  all  our  cities,  forts  and  strong-holds,  —  an  entire  annihilation  of 
our  race,  except  such  as  embrace  the  Covenant,  and  are  numbered 
with  Israel  I  !  !     '  And!  will  state,  as  a  propliecy,  that  there  loill  not 
be   an   vnhelieviag  Gentile  on  the  face  of  this  continent  fifty  years 
hence;  and  if  they  are  not  greatly  scourged  and  in  a  great  measure 
overthrown  within  five  or  ten  years  from  this  date,  (183d,)  then  the 
Book  of  Mormon  will  liave  proved  itself  false.'     This  last  quotation 
comes  from  Pratt's  '  Mormonism  Unveiled,  or  Truth   Vindicated, ' 
—  a  work,  by  the  way,  so  popular  among  tiiem  that  it  has  already 
passed   through  several  editions.     Comment  is  unnecessary  here ; 
the  fact  stands  proved,  clearly  and  incontrovortibly  proved,   that 
they  contemplate  nothing  less   than  tlie   butchery  !  murder ! !  and 
entire  annihilation  !  1  !  of  all  who  will  not  subscribe  to  their  ridicu- 
lous teachings.     And  what  adds  insult  to  injury  is  this  —  that  they 
raise  a  long  and  loud  cry  of  '  persecotio.v,'  when  people  are  only 
defending  themselves  against  their  unlawful  aggressions.     In  con- 
clusion, permit  me  to  ask  my  countrymen  v^'hedler  they  are   pre- 
pared to  allow  these  'wolves  in  sheep's  clothing '  to  impose  upon 
them  by  the  false  cry  of  peace,  when  it  is  evident  that  they  have 
only  '  religion  on  their  tongues,'  at  the  same  time  '  holding  a  dao-o'er 
in  their  hands,  and  murder  in  their  hearts.' "  °  ^" 

Mormonism  Portrayed,  by  William  Harris,  pp.  44—47. 


The  Rev.  L.  Sunderland,  in   his  Blormonism  Exposed, 
in  speaking  on  this  subject,  remarks,  — 

"Mormons   say  th.a.t   God   has   sent   down   from  Hkaven  a 

CITY,  CALLED  THK  'NEW  JERUSALEM,'  AND  LOCATED  IT  [iN  INDE- 
PENDENCE] IN  THE  WESTERN  BOUNDARIES  OF  MISSOURI,  WHERE 
HE  REQUIRES  ALL  HIS  TRUE  FOLLOWERS  TO  GO,  UNDER  THE  PAI^  Oi" 
HIS  WRATH. 


144  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

'•  And  it  is  a  fundamental  principle  with  them,  that  if  they  can- 
not buy  the  land,  they  are  to  obtain  it  by  the  sword. 

"  '  America  is  a  chosen  land  of  the  Lord,  above  every  other  land  ; 
it  is  the  place  of  the  new  Jerusalem,  which  has  come  doicn  jroin 
God  out  of  heaven.,  upon  the  earth.' —  Voice  of  Wurnijig,  p.  179. 

" '  Tliis  is  the  will  of  God  concerning  his  saints,  that  they  shall 
assemble  themselves  together  unto  the  land  of  Zion.  Behold  the 
land  of  Zion,  I  the  Lord  koldetli  it  in  my  own  hands  ;  notwithstand- 
ing, I,  the  Lord,  rendcreth  unto  Csesar  tlie  things  which  are  Ctesar's. 
WJierefore,  I,  the  Lord,  xciUeth  that  you  shall  purchase  the  lands, 
that  you  may  have  advantage  of  the  world,  that  you  may  have  claim 
of  the  world,  that  they  may  not  be  stirred  up  unto  anger;  for  Satan 
putteth  it  into  their  hearts  to  anger  against  you,  and  to  the  shedding 
of  blood.  Wherefore  the  land  of  Zion  shall  not  be  obtained  but  by 
purchase,  or  by  Mood  ;  otherwise  there  is  none  inheritance  for  you.' 
—  Doc.  and.  Coi\,  p.  143. 

" '  A  revelation  of  Jesus  Christ  unto  his  servant  Joseph  Smith, 
Jr.,  and  six  elders,  as  they  united  their  hearts  and  lifted  up  their 
voices  on  high,  *  *  *  for  the  gathering  of  his  Saints  to  stand 
on  Mount  Zion,  which  shall  be  the  city  of  New  Jerusalem  ;  which 
shall  be  built,  beginning  at  the  Temple  Lot,  [in  Independence,] 
appointed  by  the  finger  of  the  Lord,  in  the  western  boundaries  of 
Missouri.'  — 10.,  p.  88. 

" '  And  that  it  was  the  place  of  the  new  Jerusalem  which  should 
come  down  out  of  heaven,  and  the  Holy  Sanctuary  of  the  Lord.'  — 
Booh  of  Mormon,  p.  566. 

'•'The  Mormon  leaders  hold  that  they,  or  their  sect,  are 

JUSTLY  entitled  to  THE  TEMPORAL  AND   SPIRITUAL    DOMINION    OF 

THESE   United    States,   and   that   if  they  cannot   otherwise 
obtain  THIS  Dominion,  they  are  to  gain  it  by  the  Sword. 

'•  'Wherefore  the  land  of  Zion  shall  not  be  obtained,  but  by  pur- 
chase or  by  blood.' —  Doc.  and  Cov.,  p.  143. 

"  It  is  added  in  connection  with  the  above,  '  as  ye  are  forbidden 
to  shed  blood.'  But  how  the  Mormons  are  forbidden  to  shed  blood 
we  shall  see  in  the  sequel. 

"  '  For  behold,  verily  I  say  unto  you,  the  Lord  willeth  that  the 
disciples  and  the  children  of  men  should  open  their  hearts  even  to 
purchase  this  idiole  region  of  country,  as  soon  as  time  will  permit. 
Behold,  here  is  wisdom,  let  them  do  tliis,  lest  they  receive  none  in- 
heritance, save  it  be  the  shedding  of  blood.'  —  lb.,  p.  139. 

"The  following  is  designed  to  signify  the  utter  destruction 
of  this  nation,  except  it  submits  to  Mormonism.  By  the  Gentiles, 
he  means  the  people  of  these  United  States. 

*•' '  A  renmant  of  the  house  of  Jacob  [as  ho  calls  our  American 
Indians]  shall  be  among  the  Gentiles ;  yea,  in  the  midst  of  them, 
as  a  lion  among  the  beasts  of  the  forest,  as  a  young  lion  among  the 
flocks  of  sheep,  who,  if  he  go  through,  both  treadeth  down  and 
loareth  in  pieces,  and  none  can  deliver.  Their  hand  shall  be  lifted 
up  upon  their  adversaries,  and  all  their  enemies  shall  be  cut  off 
Yea,  woe  be  unto  the  Gentiles,  except  they  repent :  for  it  shall  come 


THE    DESIGNS    OF    MORMONISM.  145 

to  pass  in  that  day,  saith  the  Father,  that  I  will  cut  off  thy  horses 
out  of  tlie  midst  of  thee,  and  I  will  destroy  thy  chariots,  and  I  will 
cut  off  the  cities  of  thy  land,  and  throw  down  thy  strong-holds,'  tec. 

—  Voice  of  Warning,  p.  188. 

"  '  And  the  day  cometh  that  they  who  will  not  hear  the  voice  of 
the  Lord,  neither  the  voice  of  his  servants,  [the  Mormons,]  neither 
give  heed  to  the  words  of  the  Prophets  and  Apostles,  [Mormons,] 
shall  be  cut  off  from  among  the  people  —  for  they  have  broken 
mine  everlasting  covenant.'  —  Doc.  and  Cov.,  p.  76. 

"  '  Everlasting  covenant '  broken  ! 

"  '  Therefore,  having  so  great  witnesses,  [Joe  Smith  and  Oliver 
Cowdery,]  by  them  shall  the  toorld  be  judged,  even  as  many  as  shall 
hereafter  come  to  a  knowledge  of  this  work  —  but  those  who  harden 
their  hearts  in  unbelief,  and  reject  it,  shall  turn  to  their  own  con- 
demnation,' &c.  —  lb.,  p.  73. 

" '  Woe,  1  say  again,  unto  that  house,  or  that  village,  or  city  that 
rejecteth  you,  [Mormons,]  or  your  words,  or  your  testimony  of  me.' 

—  lb.,  p.  93. 

"  '  Let  the  Bishop  go  unto  the  city  of  New  York,  and  also  to  the 
city  of  Albany,  and  also  to  the  city  of  Boston,  and  warn  the  people 
of  those  cities  with  the  sound  of  tlie  gospel,  with  a  loud  voice,  of 
the  DESOLATION  and  utter  abolishment  which  awaits  them  if 
they  do  reject  these  things,'  [Morraonism.]  —  lb.,  p.  95. 

"  'Verily  I  say  unto  you,  [Mormons,]  that  in  time,  ye  shall  have 
no  king  nor  ruler,  for  I  will  be  your  king  and  watch  over  you ;  and 
you  shall  be  a  free  people,  and  ye  shall  have  no  laws  but  my  laws 
when  I  come.'  —  lb.,  p.  119. 

"  'Assemble  yourselves  together  to  rejoice  upon  the  land  of  Mis- 
souri, which  is  the  land  of  your  inheritance,  which  is  now  in  the 
hand  of  your  enemies.' — lb.,  p.  194. 

"  '  Therefore,  get  ye  straightway  unto  my  land;  break  dmcn  the 
walls  of  mine  enemies,  throw  doicn  their  tower,  and  scatter  their 
watchmen,  avenge  me  of  mine  enemies,  that  by  and  by  I  may  come 
and  possess  the  land.' — lb.,  p.  238. 

"MoRMONISM  DEMANDS  MoNEYASTHE  CONDITION  OF  DlSCIPLE- 
SHIP,    UNDER   THE    PENALTY    OF    EtERNAL    DAMNATION. 

'"  Whoso  receiveth  you,  receiveth  me,  and  the  same  will  feed 
you,  and  clothe  you,  and  give  you  money — and  he  who  doeth  not 
these  things  is  not  iny  disciple.'  —  Doc.  and  Cov.,  p.  93. 

"  Here  it  will  be  seen,  that  giving  money  to  the  Mormon  leaders, 
is  a  condition  of  discipleship,  and  all  who  are  not  Mormon  disciples 
are  doomed  to  hell ! 

"One  Grand  Design  of  Mormonish  is,  to  fill  the  pock- 
ets   OF    ITS   advocates    WITH   MoNEY. 

"  '  It  must  needs  be  that  ye  save  all  the  money  that  ye  can,  and 
that  ye  gain  all  ye  can  in  righteousness.'     Doc.  and  Cov.,  p.  191. 

"  '  It  is  wisdom  in  me,  that  my  servant  Mariin  Harris  should  be 
an  example  unto  the  Church,  in  laying  his  moneys  before  the  Bishop 
of  the  Church.  And  also,  this  is  a  law  unto  every  man  that  cometh 
unto  this  land,  to  receive  an  inheritance  ;  and  he  shall  do  with  his 
moneys  according  as  the  law  directs.'     lb.,  p.  138. 

13 


146  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

'■■  From  the  next  extract,  which  is  addressed  to  oneTitua  Billings, 
the  grand  object  of  Mormonisra  appears  in  full  view. 

"  •'  And  let  all  the  moneys  which  can  be  spared,  it  mattereth  not 
unto  me  whetlier  it  he  little  or  much,  be  sent  up  unto  the  land  of  Zion, 
unto  those  I  have  appointed  to  receive  it.' —  lO.  p.  143. 

"  Here  it  is  again.     Money,  money,  money  ! 

"  '  And  let  all  those  (preachers)  who  have  no  families,  who  receive 
moneys,  send  it  up  unto  the  Bishop  of  Zion.or  unto  the  Bishop  in 
Ohio,  that  it  may  be  consecrated  for  the  bringing  forth  of  the  revela- 
tions, and  the  printing  thereof,  and  establishing  Zion.' 

"  No  '  revelations  '  can  be  brought  forth  without  money.  The 
'  new  Jerusalem  '  cannot  come  down  from  heaven  without  money. 
Here  it  is  again. 

'"Behold,  this  is  my  will,  obtaining  moneys  even  as  I  have  di- 
rected.'—  lb.,  p.  143,  4. 

"  '  He  that  sendeth  up  treasures  unto  the  land  of  Zion,  shall  re- 
ceive an  inheritance  in  this  world.  And  his  work  shall  follow  him. 
And  also  a  reward  in  the  world  to  come.' —  lb.,  p.  144. 

"  And  we  must  believe  that  the  foregoing  language  is  from  the 
mouth  of  the  infinite  God,  under  the  penalty  of  eternal  damnation  ! 

"  Look,  also,  to  the  following,  said  to  be  the  words  of  the  Most 
High  :  — 

"  '  I  command  that  thou  shalt  not  covet  thine  oion  property,  but 
impart  it  freely  to  the  printing  of  the  Book  of  Mormon,  which  con- 
tains the  truths  of  the  word  of  God.' —  lb.,  p.  175. 

"  '  Impart  a  portion  of  thy  property  ;  yea,  even  part  of  thy  lands, 
and  all  save  the  support  of  lliy  family.' — lb.,  p.  J7G. 

"  The  next  extract  is  not  only  important,  as  it  plainly  shows  the 
true  Mormon  solicitude  about  money,  but  it  reveals  an  important  fact 
with  regard  to  Oliver  Cowdery,  one  of  the  eleven  witnesses  upon 
whose  ipse  dixit  we  are  commanded  to  believe  the  Book  of  Mor- 
mon. 

"  '  Hearken  unto  me,  saith  the  Lord  your  God,  for  my  servant 
Oliver  Cowdery 's  sake.  It  is  not  wisdom  in  me  that  he  should  be 
^n^ri^5.'tf/ with  the  commandments  and  the  moncy^^,  which  he  shall 
cai  r}'  up  unto  the  land  of  Zion,  ercept  one  go  with  him  who  is  true 
inul  faithful.  Wherefore,  I,  the  Lord,  willeth  that  my  servant,  John 
Whitmar,  shajl  go  with  my  servant,  Oliver  Cowdery.' — lb.,  p.  138. 

"  Does  the  reader  still  doubt  as  to  the  grand  design  of  Smith  and 
his  associatos  ?     Bead  the  following  :  — 

"  '  It  is  meet  that  my  servant,  Josej)h  Smith,  Jr.,  should  have  a 
licxise  built  in  which  to  live  and  translate.  And,  again,  it  is  meet 
that  my  servant,  Sidney  Rigdon,  sliould  live  as  scemcth  him  good, 
inasmuch  as  he  kcepeth  my  commandments.' — lb.,  p.  189. 

"  And  from  the  following  it  will  be  seen  that  Joe  Smith  excuses 
himself  from  work,  and  has  provided  himself  with  '  whatsoever  he 
needetli.'  And  this  regulation  is  not  only  to  last  while  he  lives,  but 
lie  is  to  hold  his  office  in  the  world  to  come  ! 

"  '  Provide  for  him  food  and  raiment^  ajid  lohatsoever  he  needeth.' 
—  Fo.,  p.  121). 


THE    DESIGNS    OF    MORMONISM.  147 

_  "  '  And  in  temporal  labor  thou  (Smith)  shalt  not  have  strength, 
for  this  is  not  tliij  raUing.' —  lb.,  p.  112. 

'•'Verily,  I  say  unto  you,  (Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,)  the  keys  of  the 
kingdom  shall  never  be  taken  from  you,  while  thou  art  in  this  world, 
neither  in  the  world  to  come.' — lb.,  p.  114. 

"  Nor  is  this  all.  A  new  '  revelation  '  has  recently  '  come  forth  ' 
from  this  Impostor,  in  which  he  not  only  makes  provision  for 
himself  during  life,  but,  also,  for  his  family  connections  after  him, 
forever .'  I  This  revelation  is  dated  January  19,  1841,  and  has  ap- 
peared in  the  papers  of  the  day.  It  orders  the  building  of  a  board- 
ing-house. 

"  '  And  now,  I  say  unto  you,  as  pertaining  to  my  boarding-house, 
which  1  commanded  you  to  build  for  the  boarding  of  strangers  ;  let 
it  be  built  unto  my  name,  and  let  my  name  be  named  upon  it,  and 
let  my  servant  Joseph  and  his  house  have  places  therein  from 
generation  to  generation.  For  this  anointing  have  I  put  upon 
his  head,  that  his  blessing  shall  also  be  put  upon  the  heads  of  his 
poster  it  1/  after  him,  and  as  I  said  unto  Abraham,  concerning  the  kin- 
dreds of  the  earth,  even  so  I  say  unto  my  servant  Joseph,  in  tiiee, 
and  in  thy  seed,  shall  the  kindreds  of  the  earth  be  blessed. 

"  '  Therefore,  let  my  servant  Joseph,  and  his  seed  after  him,  liave 
place  in  that  house  from  generation  to  generation  forever  and  ever, 
saith  the  Lord,  and  let  the  name  of  that  house  be  called  the  iNauvoo 
House.' 

"  Mormons  profess  to  act  under  the  infallible  Inspiration 
OF  God,  and  to  have  power  to  work  Miracles. 

"  '  Without  thes°  gifts  [prophecy,  miracles,  healing,  and  all  other 
gifts]  the  Saints  cannot  be  perfected ;  the  work  of  the  ministry 
cannot  proceed  ;  the  body  of  Christ  cannot  be  edified.' —  Voice  of 
Warning,  pp.  118, 119. 

"  '  And  as  I  said  unto  mine  apostles,  even  so  I  say  unto  you;  for 
ye  are  mine  apostles  —  therefore  as  I  said  unto  mine  apostles,  I  say 
unto  you  again,  that  every  soul  who  believeth  on  your  word,  and  is 
baptized  with  water  for  the  remission  of  sins,  shall  receive  the  Holy 
Ghost,  and  these  signs  shall  follow  them  that  believe  :  In  my  name 
they  shall  cast  out  devils — heal  the  sick  —  open  the  eyes  of  the 
blind  —  unstop  the  ears  of  the  deaf — and  if  anj'  man  shall  adminis- 
ter poison  unto  them  it  shall  not  hurt  them.' — Doc.  and  Cov.,  p.  92. 

"Mormons  are  pledged  to  work  Miracles  when  required 
TO  do  so. 

"  'Require  not  miracles,  except  I  shall  command  you,  except  cast- 
ing out  devils,  healing  the  sick,  and  against  poisonous  serpents,  and 
against  deadly  poisons :  and  these  things  ye  siiall  not  do  except  it  be 
required  of  you,  by  them  who  desire  it,  that  the  Scriptures  might  be 
fulfilled.' — Doc.  and  Cov.,  p.  112. 

"  Mormons  affirm,  that  their  Books  were  written,  and 
that  the  book  ok  mormon  was  translated,  ev  the  inspira- 
TION OF  God  ;  and  that  they  are  of  equal  Authoritv  with 
THE  Holy  Scriptures. 

"  The  book  called  '  Doctrines  and  Covenants,'  it  seems,  received 


148  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

the  approbation  of  the  Mormon  General  Assembly,  August  17,  1835. 
Twelve  Mormons  bear  the  following  testimony  to  its  divine  au- 
thority. 

"  '  We,  therefore,  feel  willing  to  bear  testimony  to  all  the  world 
of  mankind,  *  *  *  that  the  Lord  hath  borne  record  to  our  souls, 
through  the  Holy  Ghost  shed  forth  upon  us,  that  these  command- 
ments were  given  by  inspiration  of  God,  and  are  profitable  for  all 
men,  and  are  verily  true.' — Doc.  and  Gov.,  p.  256. 

"  'They  shall  speak  as  they  are  moved  upon  by  the  Holy  Ghost; 
and  what  they  shall  speak  when  moved  upon  by  the  Holy  Ghost, 
shall  be  Scripture.' — lb.,  p.  148. 

"  Mormons  pretend  to  have  Power  to  give  the  Holy 
Ghost  to  those  on  whom  they  lay  their  Hands  for  this 
purpose. 

"  '  Behold,  verily,  verily,  I  say  unto  my  servant,  Sidney  Rigdon, 
*  *  *  I  give  unto  thee  a  commandment,  that  thou  shalt  baptize 
with  water,  and  they  shall  receive  the  Holy  Ghost  by  the  laying 
on  of  hands,  even  as  the  apostles  of  old.' —  Doc.  and  Cov.,  p.  116. 

"MORMONISM    authorizes    ThEFT. 

"  '  Behold  it  is  said  in  my  laws,  or  forbidden  to  get  in  debt  to  thine 
enemies ;  but,  behold,  it  is  not  said,  at  any  time,  that  the  Lord 
should  not  take  when  he  please,  and  pay  as  seemeth  him  good : 
wherefore,  as  ye  are  agents,  and  ye  are  on  the  Lord's  errand,  and 
whatsoever  ye  do  according  to  the  will  of  the  Lord  is  the  Lord's 
business,  and  he  hath  sent  you  to  provide  for  his  Saints,'  &.c. —  Doc. 
and  Cov.,  p.  147. 

"  A  Mormon  has  only  to  imagine  himself  an  agent  of  God,  and, 
according  to  the  above  precept,  he  may  steal  or  commit  any  other 
crime,  and  fancy  himself  doing  the  will  of  God  all  the  while.  And 
these  very  things  the  Mormons  have  done." 


IVoTn  the  Louisville  Journal  of  July  27,  1842. 

"  [CF  General  John  C.  Bennett,  the  author  of  the  expositions  of 
Joe  Smith's  character  and  conduct,  passed  through  this  city  on 
Saturday.  In  consequence  of  some  conversation  we  had  with  him, 
he  has  since  sent  us  the  following  letter.  The  astounding  facts  that 
It  sets  forth  are  certainly  worthy  of  the  earnest  consideration  of  the 
civil  authorities  of  Illinois. 

"  '  Steamer  Importer,  July  23,  A.  D.  1842. 
"  '  To  the  Editors  of  the  Louisville  Journal :  — 
"  '  As  I  promised  to  lay  before  you  some  of  the  strong  points  of 
objection  to  "  the  gathering  of  the  Saiiits,"  or  the  congregating  of 
the  Mormons  at  one  point,  or  general  head-quarters,  I  now  proceed 
to  redeem  the  pledge. 

'"1st.  Nine  hundred  and  ninety-nine  thousandths  of  all  the 
faithful  of  the  Mormon  Church  regard  Joe  Smith  as  God's  vice- 
gerent on  earth,  and  obey  him  accordingly ;  and  all  the  Danites  of 


THE    DESIGNS    OF    MORMONISM.  149 

that  Church  (and,  by  the  bye,  they  compose  no  very  inconsiderable 
proportion  of  their  miglity  hosts)  are  sworn  to  receive  liim  as  the 
supreme  head  of  tlie  Church,  and  to  obey  Jiim  as  tiie  supreme  God. 
If,  therefore,  any  State  officer,  in  the  administration  of  public  justice, 
happens  to  give  offence  to  His  Holiness  the  Prophet,  it  becomes  the 
will  of  God,  as  spoken  by  the  mouth  of  his  Prophet,  that  that  func- 
tionary should  die;  and  his  followers,  the  faithful  Saints,  immedi- 
ately set  about  the  work  of  assassination,  in  obedience,  as  they  sup- 
pose, to  their  Divine  Master;  and  for  which  noble  deed,  they 
expect  to  receive  an  excellent  and  superior  glory  in  the  celestial 
kingdom  !  ! !  It  does  not  require  Argus  eyes  to  see  the  incalculable 
mischief  growing  out  of  such  a  state  of  society;  and  an  intelligent 
community  must  look  on  with  awful  forebodings  and  fearful  antici- 
pations, where  such  a  state  of  things  is  suffered.  Great  God  !  only 
look  at  the  horrible  picture  !  The  lives  of  thousands  of  human  be- 
ings depending  upon  the  whim  or  caprice  of  the  most  corrupt, 
Heaven-daring,  and  black-hearted  Impostor  that  ever  disgraced  the 
earth  !  The  whole  community  are  in  the  most  imminent  danjrer, 
from  the  common  citizen  to  the  highest  public  functionary,  unless 
they  chain  their  fate  to  the  car  of  Mormon  despotism. 

"'2d.  Where  a  large  community,  like  the  Mormons,  are  under 
the  absolute  dictation  of  a  vacillating  and  capricious  tyrant,  like 
Joe  Smith,  who  acts  not  under  the  influence  of  reason,  but  is  wholly 
governed  by  impulses  and  selfish  motives,  political  demagogues  will 
become  fawning  sycophants,  and  the  best  interests  of  the  country 
will  be  sacrificed  to  the  ambitious  views  of  an  ancient  or  modern 
Prophet  —  a. Mahomet  or  a  Smith  !  This  state  of  things  is  fraught 
with  the  most  fearful  consequences — the  subversion  of  govern- 
ments; the  fall  of  kingdoms  and  empires;  the  destruction  of  na- 
tions, by  the  shedding  of  rivers  of  human  blood ;  and,  where  conse- 
quences of  a  less  serious  nature  accrue,  it  destroys  natural  affection, 
hardens  the  heart  against  the  better  feelings  of  our  nature,  and  pro- 
duces a  state  of  savage  barbarity,  which  causes  a  civilized  man  to 
shudder,  and  from  which  he  turns  with  loathing  and  disgust. 

"  '  3d.  The  standard  of  morality  and  Christian  excellence  with 
them  is  quite  unstable.  Joe  Smith  has  but  to  speak  the  word,  and 
it  becomes  the  i..\.v/ tchich  they  delight  to  ohcy — because  it  comes 
FROM  God  !  ! !  Acts,  therefore,  which  but  yesterday  were  consid- 
ered the  most  immoral,  wicked,  and  devilish,  to-day  are  the  most 
moral,  righteous,  and  God-like,  because  God,  who  makes  right,  has 
so  declared  it  by  the  movth  of  his  anointed  Prophet! 

"  '  4lh.  Joe  Smith  designs  to  abolish  all  human  laws,  and  establish 
a  Theocracy,  in  which  the  word  of  God,  as  spoken  by  his  (Joe's) 
mouth,  shall  be  the  only  law;  and  he  now  orders  that  his  followers 
shall  only  obey  such  human  laws  as  they  are  compelled  to  do,  and 
declares  that  the  time  is  at  hand  when  all  human  institutions  shall 
be  abrogated  !  Joe's  icill  is  to  become  the  law  of  right,  and  his 
power  is  to  execute  it. 

'_' '  5th.  Under  the  new  order  of  things,  aJl  the  property  of  the 
Saints,  with  their  wives  and  little  ones,  is  to  be  consecrated  to  Joe, 
13* 


150  HISTORY    or    THE    SAINTS. 

to  subserve  his  purposes  and  gratify  his  passions!  These  are  only 
SOME  of  the  reasons  which  I  shall  hereafter,  when  time  permits, 
consider  more  in  detail ;  and,  in  the  mean  time,  I  should  like  your 
opinion  on  a  matter  of  so  much  importance  to  all  of  our  fellow- 
citizens. 

"  '  With  high  considerations  of  respect  and  esteem,  suSer  me  to 
subscribe  myself —  Yours,  respectfully, 

"  '  John  C.  Bennett.'  " 


From  the  JVeio  York  Herald  of  August  30,  1849. 

"  LATE  AKD  IMPORTANT   FROM  THE   MORMON  COUNTRY. 

"  We  have  just  received  a  variety  of  curious,  strange,  and  original 
information  from  this  part  of  the  world.  Some  of  it  is  political, 
some  financial,  some  belligerent,  some  religious,  and  some  personal. 

"  Among  other  items  we  have  the  following  news,  which  was 
written  on  the  outside  of  a  letter  received  on  Saturday,  at  one  of 
the  public  offices,  from  Chicago,  Illinois.  '  A  battle  has  been  fought 
between  the  Mormons  and  Anti-Mormons.  The  extra  says,  thirty 
or  forty  were  killed  or  wounded.  The  Governor  has  gone  down 
with  200  men.' 

"  In  connection  witli  this  we  have  the  following  letter  from  the 
head-quarters  of  Joe  Smith,  the  Prophet,  and  second  Mahomet  him 
self:  — 

"  '  He.^d-Quarters,  Nauvoo  Legion,  Ciiv  of  Nautoo,  August  4,  1842. 
'"GENERAL  ORDER 

" '  As  General  John  C.  Bennett  has  retired  from  the  service, 
General  James  Arlington  Bennet,  the  ne.xt  ranking  officer,  is  hereby 
ordered  to  repair  forthwitli  to  the  Head-Quarters  of  the  Legion,  and 
assume  the  command,  accompanied  by  his  chief  Aid-de-Camp,  Gen- 
eral James  Gordon  Bennett. 

"  '  The  requisition  from  the  Executive  of  Missouri,  on  the  Exec- 
utive of  Illinois,  for  the  person  of  the  Lieutenant-General,  (at  the 
instance  of  their  accomplice.  Dr.  John  C.  Bennett,)  for  the  attempt- 
ed assassination  of  Ex-Governor  Boggs,  makes  it  necessary  that 
the  most  able  and  experienced  officers  should  be  in  the  field,  for  if 
the  demand  is  persisted  in,  blood  must  be  shed. 

"  '  By  order  of  Lieut.  Gen.  Joseph  Smith. 

"  '  Hugh  McFail, 

"  '■Adjutant-General. 

"  '  This  will  be  conveyed  to  New  York  by  John  Slade,  Esq.,  who 
is  just  leaving  the  city  for  the  east,  to  watch  Dr.  Bennett's  move- 
ments.' 

"  In  connection  with  the  above,  we  have  also  received  the  follow- 
ing letter  from  General  John  C.  Bennett,  now  in  this  city,  enclosing 
one  from  the  brother  of  Governor  Boggs,  of  Missouri ;  we  give  them 
both  :  — 


THE    DESIGNS    OF    MORMONISM.  151 

"  '  New  York,  August  27, 1842. 
"'General  James  Gordon  Bennett,  LL.  D.  : 
"  '  Dear  Sir,  — 

"  '  As  you  have  recently  been  presented  with  the  ap- 
pointment of,  and  commissioned  as,  Aid-de-Camp  to  His  Imperial 
Holiness,  Joseph  Smith,  Emperor  of  the  Mormon  Empire,  with  the 
rank  and  title  of  Brigadier- General,  I  presume  that  the  perusal  of 
the  enclosed  letter  from  Dr.  Joseph  O.  Boggs  will  not  be  uninteresting 
to  you.  I  have  replied  to  the  communication,  and  stand  in  readi- 
ness to  obey  the  mandate  of  Missouri,  to  testify  in  the  premises. 
The  Mormon  Pontiff  shall  tremble  at  the  sight  of  gathering  hosts, 
in  the  days  of  his  captivity,  like  an  aspen  leaf  in  the  wilderness. 
"  '  Savitque  animis  ignobile  rulgus  ; 

Jamquc faces  et  saga  volant:  jfuror  arvia  ministrat.' 
"  '  The  rude  rabble  are  enraged ;  now  the  firebrands  and  stones 
are  seen  to  fly  about;  their  fury  supplies  them  with  arms.' 
"  '  But  the  Mormon  Autocrat  should  remember  the  old  adage  — 
"  '  Sccpe  intereunt  aliis  meditantes  necem.' 

"  '  Those  who  plot  the  destruction  of  others,  very  often  fall  them- 
selves the  victims.' 

"  '  Though  his  touch  be  as  deadly  as  that  of  the  Bohon  Upas,  1 
will  tear  the  ermine  of  sanctity  from  the  shoulders  of  His  Pontifical 
Holiness,  and  dim  the  glory  of  his  mitred  head.  It  may  justly  be 
said  of  him,  as  a  shawn-bawn  once  said  to  a  stranger  in  Ireland,  in 
speaking  of  two  persons  of  the  names  of  Pierce  and  Damer,  (com- 
paring the  Mormon  Mahomet  to  Damer,) — "Damer,"  said  he, 
"  was  icorser  than  Pierce,  and  Pierce  was  worser  than  Damer,  and 
Damer  himself  was  worser  than  the  Devil." 

"  '  In  the  face  of  High  Heaven  he  has  perpetrated  the  blackest 
deeds  of  felony,  and  in  the  curling  flames  of  Tartarus  shall  he  drink 
the  dregs  of  the  culprit's  cup. 

"  '  Nothing  short  of  an  excision  of  the  cancer  of  Mormonism  will 
effect  a  cure  of  that  absorbing  delusion,  and  the  strong  arm  of  mili- 
tary power  must  perform  the  operation  at  the  edge  of  the  sword, 
point  of  the  bayonet,  and  mouth  of  the  cannon. 

"  '  Yours,  respectfully, 

"  '  John  C.  Bennett.' 

"  '  IrfDEFENDENCE,  jlugUSt  4,  1842. 

"'General  J.  C.  Bennett: 
" '  Sir,  — 

"  '  I  write  in  behalf  of  my  brother,  L.  W.  Boggs,  to 
say  that  Governor  Reynolds  has  demanded  Joe  Smith  and  O.  P. 
Rockwell  from  the  Governor  of  Illinois.  The  old  indictments  against 
Smith  and  others,  for  murder,  arson,  burglary,  &c.,  were  dismissed 
by  the  prosecuting  attorney  about  two  years  ago.  Affidavits  were 
made  by  my  brother  against  both,  Rockwell  as  principal,  and  Joe 
Smith  as  accessory  before  the  fact.  It  is  to  be  regretted  that  you  left 
St.  Louis  before  the  messenger  despatched  to  Illinois  reached  there  ; 
you  could  doubtless  have  advised  him  of  the  best  meEUis  of  securing 
Smith  and  Rockwell. 


152  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

"  '  We  look  for  the  return  of  the  messenger  in  the  course  of  ten 
days.  If  he  succeeds  in  securing  the  men,  it  will  be  necessary  for 
you  to  come  on  here  immediately.  I  shall  write  to  you  again,  as 
soon  as  it  is  ascertained  that  they  are  within  the  State.  In  the  mean 
time,  do  you  endeavor  to  have  all  the  evidence  collected  that  you 
think  will  be  required. 

"  '  Yours,  respectfully, 

'"Joseph  O.  Boggs.' 

"  "With  regard  to  going  out  to  Nauvoo  immediately,  we  shall  state 
our  views  shortly.  In  the  mean  time,  we  shall  see,  and  hear,  and 
report  what  reasons  General  John  C  Bennett  can  advance  to-night 
in  his  discourse  that  may  prevent  us  from  standing  by  Joe  Smith, 
until,  as  he  says,  blood  shall  flow."  ■ 


D-om  the  JVew  York  Herald. 

"  MILITARY    MOVEMENTS. 

"  I  have  just  received  the  following,  by  military  express,  from  the 
Major-General :  — 

"Arlington  House,  August  31,  1842. 
'"Sir,— 

"  '  As  the  ranking  Major-General  of  the  Nauvoo  Legion,  I 
have  received  a  General  Order  to  repair  inamediately  to  head- 
quarters, and  assume  the  command,  accompanied  by  my  principal 
Aid-de-Camp,  Brigadier-General  James  Gordon  Bennett. 

"  '  Now,  sir,  I  shall  ever  hold  myself  ready  to  defend  the  Mormon 
people,  or  any  other  people  with  whom  I  might  be  associated, 
against  mob  violence  ;  but  at  the  same  time  feel  that  I  am  not 
bound  to  act  against  the  constituted  authorities  of  the  State  t)f  Illi- 
nois, nor  of  any  other  State  in  the  Union,  nor  would  I  do  it  were  it 
for  a  brother. 

"  '  I  have  transmitted  the  Order  to  his  Excellency  Governor 
Carlin  for  instructions,  while,  at  the  same  time,  I  sliall  repair  imme- 
diately to  Nauvoo,  and  take  command  of  the  Legion,  where  I  expect 
you  will  accompany  me,  in  conformity  with  its  mandate. 

"  '  I  should  desire  no  better  fun  than  to  despatch  you  with  orders, 
on  my  horse  Cicero,  among  the  whizzing  bullets,  or  blue  pills  of 
Galena. 

"  '  Most  respectfully  yours,  &c., 

" 'James  Arlington  Bennet, 
"  '  Inspector  and  Major-General  of  the  Kauvoo  Legion.^ 

"  Blood  and  'ouns,  I'll  go.  It  never  shall  be  said  that  the  blood 
of  the  Bennetts  did  not  rise  to  the  top.  Who  knows  but  I  may  get 
one  of  these  glorious  bullets  in  the  'calf'.'  What  would  Colonel 
Webb  say  if  I  disobeyed  a  military  mandate .''  In  the  mean  time,  I 
highly  approve  of  my  superior  in  command  ascertaining  first  the 
constitutionality  of  the  measure,  by  direct  application  to  Governor 
Carlin,  to  see  if  there  be  any  necessity  of  a  veto.     But  etill,  I  must 


THE    DESIGNS    OF    MORMONISM.  153 

prepare.     I  have  no  uniform.     Egad,  I  must  advertise  for  proposals. 
So  here  goes : — 

"Wanted  to  Purchase. —  A  full  suit  of  uniform  for  an  officer 
of  the  rank  of  Brigadier-General  in  the  Nauvoo  Legion  ;  also,  a 
fine  horse,  thirteen  hands  high,  a  sword,  &c.,  including  a  good  old 
Bible  and  Prayer-book.  Nothing  like  being  well  provided  with  all 
sorts  of  ammunition." 

It  does  not  require  Argus  eyes  to  see  that  General  J. 
Gordon  Bennett  has  no  idea  of  joining  the  Mormon  Auto- 
crat. "  The  Napoleon  of  the  American  Press"  is  too 
smart  a  man,  and  too  wily  and  shrewd  an  officer,  to  think 
of  risking  his  precious  carcass  in  the  tented  field  in  the 
present  crisis ;  and,  in  fact,  the  severe  attack  of  Coup-de- 
Soleil,  (the  legitimate  effects  of  the  scorching  rays  of  the 
Nev\^  York  Sun,)  under  which  he  is  now  laboring,  wholly 
disables  him  for  camp  duty.  The  Scotch  Bennetts  were 
never  proverbial  for  their  military  prowess;  and  General 
J.  Arlington  Bennet,  who,  by  the  bye,  is  one  of  the  most 
talented  and  experienced  officers  in  the  Union,  cannot  be 
cajoled  by  a  military  order  from  His  Imperial  Holiness, 
through  a  Jack-Mormon  Adjutant-General,  into  palpable 
usurpation  and  open  rebellion  against  the  legal  authorities. 


From  the  New  York  Herald  of  June  17,  1842. 

"  HIGHLY  IMPORTANT  FROM  THE  JIORMON  EMPIRE.  — VVONDER- 
"  FUL  PROGRESS  OF  JOE  SMITH,  THE  MODERN  MAHOMET.  — 
"  SPREAD  OF  THE  MORMON  FAITH,  AND  A  NEW  RELIGIOUS  REV- 
"  OLUTION  AT  HAND. 

"  By  the  mails  last  evening  we  received  a  variety  of  letters  and 
papers  from  Nauvoo,  the  capital  of  the  new  religious  revolutionary 
empire,  established  by  Joe  Smith,  and  also  from  other  towns  in 
Illinois,  exhibiting  the  extraordinary  progress  of  this  most  extraor- 
dinary people,  who  call  themselves  the  '  Latter  Day  Saints.' 

"  These  letters  and  papers  are  as  follows  :  —  First —  A  letter  from 
a  United  States  artillery  officer,  travelling  through  Nauvoo,  who 
gives  a  most  original  glimpse  of  the  Mormon  movement  there. 
Second  —  An  extract  from  the  '  Sangamo  Journal  '  of  the  3d  of  June, 
a  newspaper  in  favor  of  the  whig  party,  and  opposed  to  the  Mormons 
on  account  of  their  locofoco  tendency,  requiring  a  view  of  their  mil- 
itary organization.  Third — A  law  of  the  Mormon  city  of  Nauvoo, 
extending  toleration  towards  all  religions,  even  Mohammedan,  and 
assuming  power  to  legislate  for  all  with  imperial  nonchalance. 
Fourth  —  A  public  meeting  of  the  Mormons  in  Nauvoo,  developing 
their  sentiments  and  position  in  the  elections  in  Illinois.     Fifth  —  A 


154  HISTORY    OF   THE    SAINTS. 

letter  to  Mrs.  Emma  Smith,  the  wife  of  the  Prophet,  from  a  lady  in 
Edwardsville,  exhibiting  the  singular  mixture  of  piety,  politics,  tact, 
and  shrewdness,  in  those  wiko  believe  in  Mormonism. 

"All  these  letters  and  documents  disclose  a  most  extraordinary 
movement  in  human  affairs.  What  they  mean,  we  can  hardly  tell ; 
but  is  it  not  time  for  some  great  religious  revolution,  as  radical  as 
Luther's,  to  take  place  in  the  Christian  world  ? 

"  In  the  early  ages  of  antiquity,  before  the  dates  of  the  monuments 
of  Egypt,  we  have  distinguished  names  handed  down  to  us  by  tra- 
dition. Brama,  Vishnu,  Confucius,  Zoroaster,  Isis,  Osiris,  includ- 
ing Adam,  Seth,  Noali,  Abraham,  were  the  master-spirits  of  a  great 
antiquity  throughout  the  ancient  world.  In  later  times,  we  have 
Moses  and  the  Prophets,  Peter  and  Paul,  and  the  apostles  of  Christ 
—  and  even  Mahomet,  who  acknowledged  the  truth  of  Christianity. 
Each  of  these  movements  was  a  religious  revolution,  but  that  which 
followed  the  time  of  Adam,  Seth,  Noah,  Abraham,  Moses,  Christ, 
and  the  apostles,  has  developed  the  only  true  system  of  morak,  of 
belief,  of  revelation,  of  prophecy,  of  man,  of  God,  of  eternity. 
When  the  Christian  church  was  overwhelmed  with  the  follies  and 
superstition  of  Rome,  and  the  thousand  quarrelling  sects  of  monks 
and  idlers,  a  fresh  spirit  arose  in  the  world  —  a  spark  came  down 
from  Heaven  —  Luther  lifted  up  his  voice,  and  a  religious  revolution 
started  at  his  word,  and  renovated  Christianity.  But  a  new  age  has 
come  —  a  fresh  infusion  of  faith  is  required — a  strong  impulse  is 
rendered  necessary. 

"  May  not  this  wonderful  Mormon  movement  be  the  signal  for  a 
new  religious  revolution.'  Is  not  Joe  Smith  its  master-spirit,  and 
General  Bennett  its  military  spirit.'  The  vast  progress  of  the  last 
century,  in  art  and  science,  through  steam  and  type,  has  changed 
the  nature  of  man  and  society.  Is  it  not  necessary  that  a  new  re- 
ligion and  a  new  faith  should  come  down  from  Heaven,  to  carry  out 
the  destiny  of  the  race,  under  its  present  condition .' 

"  It  is  very  evident  that  the  Mormons  exhibit  a  remarkable  degree 
of  tact,  skill,  shrewdness,  energy,  and  enthusiasm.  The  particular 
features  of  their  faith  are  nothing  against  their  success.  Do  they 
believe  their  new  Bible — their  virgin  revelation  —  their  singular 
creed .'  If  they  do  so  with  enthusiasm,  and  practise  their  shrewd 
precepts,  the  other  sects  will  fall  before  them.  This  is  certain  — 
this  is  human  nature.  In  Illinois,  they  have  already  shown  how  to 
acquire  power  and  influence,  by  holding  the  balance  of  power  be- 
tween both  the  great  parties.  They  can  already  dictate  to  the  State 
of  Illinois,  and  if  they  pursue  the  same  policy  in  other  States,  will 
they  not  soon  dictate  to  Congress,  and  decide  the  Presidency?  In 
all  matters  of  public  concernment,  they  act  as  one  man,  with  one 
soul,  one  mind,  and  one  purpose.  Their  religious  and  moral  princi- 
ples bind  them  together  firmly.  They  may  be,  and  have  been,  abused 
and  calumniated — partly  true  —  partly  false  —  but  whether  true  or 
false,  these  attacks  only  increase  their  popularity  and  influence. 
Unlike  all  other  Christian  sects,  they  adopt,  at  once,  all  the  modern 
improvements  of  society,  in  art  or  literature,  and  from  their  sino-ular 
religious  faith,  give  the  highest  enthusiasm  to  the  movement  at  large. 


THE    DESIGNS    OF  MORMONISM.  155 

There  is  nothing  odd,  or  singular,  or  absurd  about  them,  that  they 
will  not  cast  away,  if  it  interferes  with  their  progress  to  power. 

"Verily,  verily,  we  are  truly  in  the  'latter  dnys;'  and  we 
should  not  be  surprised  to  see  that  tlie  Mormon  religion  is  the  real 
millennium  already  commenced.  One  thing  is  certain.  The  Mor- 
mons are  so  constituted,  that,  in  these  temperance  times,  they  will 
swallow  up  all  the  other  lukewarm  Protestant  sects ;  and  the  moral 
and  religious  world  will  be  divided  between  the  Pope  and  the  Cath- 
olics on  one  side,  and  Joe  Smith  and  the  Mormons  on  the  other. 
The  oyster  is  opening,  and  will  soon  be  equally  divided.' 


["  Correspondence  of  the  Herald.] 

" '  Cixr  OF  JVauvoo,  Illinois,  May  8,  1842. 
"  '  THE  MORMONS,  A  VERY  SINGULAR  PEOPLE.  —  MILITARY,  CIV- 
"  '  IL,  AND  LITERARY  ORGANIZATION.  — AMBITIOUS  VIEWS  AND 
"  '  PURPOSES. 

'"J.  G.  Bennett,  LL.  D.: 

"  '  I  address  you  as  Doctor,  because  I  am  assured  that  the  Univer- 
sity of  this  city  has  conferred  on  you  the  degree  of  LL.  D.;  and 
this  is  no  small  feather  in  your  cap,  when  we  consider  the  talent  and 
learning  possessed  by  the  faculty  of  this  chartered  institution,  which 
will,  before  long,  be  equal,  if  not  superior,  to  any  college  in  this 
country. 

"  '  Yesterday  was  a  great  day  among  the  Mormons.  Their  Legion, 
to  the  number  of  two  thousand  men,  was  paraded  by  Generals  Smith, 
Bennett,  and  others,  and  certainly  made  a  very  noble  and  imposing 
appearance.  The  evolutions  of  the  troops  directed  by  Major-Gen- 
eral  Bennett  would  do  honor  to  any  body  of  armed  militia  in  any 
of  the  States,  and  approximates  very  closely  to  our  regular  forces. 
What  does  all  this  mean  .=  Why  this  exact  discipline  of  the  Mormon 
corps  .^  Do  they  intend  to  conquer  Missouri,  Illinois,  Mexico  .'  It  is 
true  they  are  part  of  the  militia  of  tjje  State  of  Illinois,  by  the  char- 
ter of  their  Legion ;  but  then  there  are  no  troops  in  the  States  liiie 
them  in  point  of  enthusiasm  and  warlike  aspect,  yea,  warlike  char- 
acter. Before  many  years,  this  Legion  will  be  twenty,  and  perhaps 
fitly  thousand  strong,  and  still  augmenting.  A  fearful  host,  filled 
with  religious  enthusiasm,  and  led  on  by  ambitious  and  talented 
officers,  what  may  not  be  effected  by  them.!"  Perhaps  the  subversion 
of  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States;  and  if  this  sJiould  be  con- 
sidered too  great  a  task,  foreign  conquest  will  most  certainly  follow. 
Mexico  will  fall  into  their  hands,  even  if  Texas  should  first  take  it. 

'■'These  Mormons  are  accumulating,  like  a  snow-ball  rollino- 
down  an  inclined  plane,  which,  in  the  end,  becomes  an  avalanche". 
They  are  also  enrolling  among  their  officers  some  of  the  first  talent 
m  the  country,  by  titles  or  bribes,  it  don't  matter  which.  Tiiey  liave 
appointed  your  namesake.  Captain  Bennet,  late  of  the  army  of  the 
United  States,  Inspector-General  of  their  Legion,  and  he  is  com- 
missioned as  such  by  Governor  Carlin.  This  gentleman  is  known 
to  be  well  skilled  in  fortification,  gunnery,  ordnance,  castrametation, 


156  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

and  military  engineering  generally,  and  I  am  assured  that  he  is  now 
under  pay,  derived  from  tlie  titiiings  of  this  warliice  peoijle.  I  have 
seen  his  plans  for  fortifying  Nauvoo,  which  are  equal  to  any  of 
Vauban's. 

" '  General  John  C.  Bennett,  a  New  England  man,  is  the  Prophet's 
great  gun.  They  call  him  (though  a  man  about  the  stature  of  Na- 
poleon) the  "  forty-two  pounder."  Pie  might  have  applied  his  talents 
in  a  more  honorable  cause,  but  I  am  assured  that  he  is  well  paid  for 
the  important  services  he  is  rendering  this  people,  or,  I  should  rather 
say,  rendering  the  Prophet.  This  gentleman  exhibits  the  highest 
degree  of  field  military  talent,  (field  tactics,)  united  with  extensive 
learning.  He  may  yet  become  dangerous  to  the  States.  He  was 
Quarter-Master- General  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  and  at  another  time 
a  Professor  in  the  Erie  University.  It  will,  therefore,  be  seen,  that 
nothing  but  a  high  price  could  have  secured  him  to  these  fanatics. 
Only  a  part  of  their  officers,  regents,  and  professors,  however,  are 
Mormons ;  but  then  they  are  all  united  by  a  common  interest,  and  will 
act  togetiier  on  main  points  to  a  man.  Those  who  are  not  Mormons 
when  they  come  here,  very  soon  become  so,  either  from  interest  or 
conviction. 

"  '.The  Smiths  are  not  without  talent,  and  are  said  to  be  as  brave  as 
lions.  Josepli,  the  chief,  is  a  noble-looking  fellow,  a  Mahomet  every 
inch  of  him.  The  Postmaster,  Sidney  Rigdon,  is  a  lawyer,  philoso- 
pher, and  Saint.  Their  other  Generals  are  also  men  of  talents,  and 
some  of  them  men  of  learning.  I  have  no  doubt  tliat  they  are  all 
brave,  as  they  are  most  unquestionably  ambitious,  and  the  tendency 
of  their  religious  creed  is  to  annihilate  all  other  sects ;  you  may, 
therefore,  see  that  the  time  will  come,  when  this  gathering  host  of 
religious  fanatics  will  make  this  country  shake  to  its  centre.  A 
western  empire  is  certain.  Ecclesiastical  history  presents  no  parallel 
to  this  people,  inasnmch  as  they  are  establishing  their  religion  on  a 
learned  footing.  All  the  sciences  are  taught,  and  to  be  taught,  in 
Iheir  colleges,  with  Latin,  Greek,  Hebrew,  French,  Italian,  Spanish, 
&c.  «S:c.  The  mathematical  sciences,  pure  and  mixed,  are  now  in 
.successful  operation,  under  an  extremely  able  Professor,  of  the  name 
of  Pratt;  and  a  graduate  of  Trinity  College,  Dublin,  is  President  of 
their  University. 

"  '  Now,  sir,  what  do  you  think  of  Joseph,  the  modern  Mahomet.' 

"  '  I  arrived  here,  incog.,  on  the  first  iust.,  and  from  the  great  prep- 
aration for  the  military  parade,  was  induced  to  stay  to  see  the  turn- 
out, which  I  confess  has  astonished  and  filled  me  with  fears  for 
future  consequences.  The  Mormons,  it  is  true,  are  now  peaceable, 
but  the  lion  is  asleep.     Take  care,  and  don't  rouse  him. 

"  •'  The  city  of  Nauvoo  contains  about  ten  thousand  souls,  and  is 
rapidly  increasing.  It  is  well  laid  out,  and  the  municipal  affairs 
appear  to  be  well  conducted.  The  adjoining  country  is  a  beautiful 
prairie.  Who  will  say  that  the  Mormon  Prophet  is  not  among  the 
great  spirits  of  the  age  .' 

'"  The  Mormons  number,  in  Europe  and  America,  about  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  thousand,  and  are  constantly  pouring  into  Nauvoo  and 
the  neighboring  country.     There  are,  probably,  in  and  about  this 


THE    DESIGNS    OF    MORMONISM.  157 

city,  and  adjacent  territories,  not  far  from  30,000  of  these  warlike 
fanatics,  this  place  having  been  settled  by  them  only  three  years  ago. 
'"An  Officer  of  the  U.  S.  Artillery. 


["'From  the  Sangamo  (Illinois)  Journal.] 

"  '  Since  the  attempt  upon  the  life  of  Governor  Boggs,  it  has  been 
feared  that  some  emissaries  might  visit  Nauvoo,  for  the  purpose  of 
retaliating  upon  the  Mormon  Prophet;  and  for  that  reason,  it  is 
rumored,  a  guard  is  now  provided  for  the  city.  The  official  notices 
of  the  establishment  of  this  guard,  are  given  in  the  "  Wasp,"  which 
are  here  copied  :  — 

"  '  Major-General's  Office,  Nauvoo  Legion,  ) 
City  of  Nauvoo,  (111.,)  May  20,  1845.  ) 

"'To  the  Citizens  of  the  City  of  Nauvoo:  — 

" '  I  have  tliis  day  received  an  order  from  General 
Joseph  Smith,  Mayor  of  said  city,  to  detail  a  regular  night  watcli  for 
the  city,  which  I  have  executed,  by  selecting  and  placing  on  duty 
the  following  named  persons,  to  wit: — D.  B.  Huntington,  W.  D. 
Huntington,  L.  N.  Scovil,  C.  Allen,  A.  P.  Rockwood,  iN.  Pcogers, 
S.  Roundy,  and  J.  Arnold;  who  will  hereafter  be  obeyed  and  re- 
spected  as  such,  until  further  orders. 

"'John  C.  Bennett,  Major- General." 

"  '  Mayor's  Office,  City  op  Nauvoo,  May  20,  A.  D.  1842 
"To  THE  City  Watch:  — 

'"  You  are  hereby  directed  to  appear  at  my  office  daily, 
at  6  o'clock,  P.  M.,  to  receive  orders,  and  at  6  o'clock,  A.  M.,  to 
make  reports,  until  regularly  disbanded  by  the  JMajor- General  of 
the  Legion,  by  my  order.  Joseph  Smith,  .Mayor."  ' 

"  '  From  these  official  notices,  it  would  appe.ar  that  the  Mormons 
have  a  government  entirely  of  their  own,  an  army  of  their  own, 
portions  of  which  are  detached  on  the  requisition  of  the  Mayor  of 
Nauvoo,  when  he  pleases  to  make  a  requisition  upon  the  command- 
ing officer  f  )r  their  services.  This  is,  indeed,  a  curious  state  of 
things.  A  Christian  sect  in  Illinois,  keeping  up  a  military  organi- 
zation for  their  own  particular  purposes  !  What  would  be  thought, 
if  the  Baptists,  Methodists,  Presbyterians,  or  Episcopalians  of  this 
Stale,  had  separate  military  organizations,  and  that  their  respective 
lecrions  of  troops  were  in  constant  practice  of  military  discipline  ? 
These  Mormon  troops  are  said  now  to  amount  to  2000  men,  and 
that  tliey  are  as  well  drilled  as  regular  soldiers. 

"  '  'I'he  laws  of  incorporation  under  which  tiie  Mormons  are  now 
enjoying  exclusive  privileges,  have  given  rise,  latterly, to  some  public 
discussions.  We  have  now  before  us  a  commamication  from  Mount 
Vernon,  Jefferson  county,  in  this  State,  which  possesses  much  in- 
terest. It  appears  from  this  communication,  that  the  laws  in  ques- 
tion were  passed  by  our  locofoco  legislature,  (a  legislature,  by  the 
bye,  which  professed  an  utter  aversion  to  monopolies  in  the  shape 

14 


158  HISTORY    OF   THE    SAINTS. 

of  incorporations,)  for  political  purposes  ;  that  they  were  passed  to 
secure  tlie  Mormon  vote.  There  can  now  be  no  doubt  of  the  fact, 
that  the  proclamation  issued  by  Lieutenant-General  Smith,  to  his 
people,  requiring  them  to  vote  for  Messrs.  Snyder  and  Moore,  was 
the  result  of  the  passage  of  these  laws  by  the  locofoco  legislature. 

«  '  AN  ORDINANCE  IN  RELATION  TO  RELIGIOUS  SOCIETIES. 

"'  Sec.  1.  Be  it  ordained  by  the  City  Council  of  the  City  of  Nau- 
voo,  that  the  Catholics,  Presbyterians,  Methodists,  Baptists,  Latter 
Day  Saints,  Quakers,  Episcopalians,  Universalists,  Unitarians,  Mo- 
hammedans, and  all  other  religious  sects  and  denominations  whatever, 
shall  liave  toleration  and  equal  privileges  in  this  city  ;  and  should 
any  person  be  guilty  of  ridiculing,  abusing,  or  otherwise  depreciat- 
ing another,  in  consequence  of  his  religion,  or  of  disturbing  or  in- 
terrupting any  religious  meeting  within  the  limits  of  this  city,  he 
shall,  on  conviction  thereof  before  the  Mayor,  or  iSIunicipal  Court, 
be  considered  a  disturber  of  the  public  peace,  and  fined  in  any 
sum  not  exceeding  five  hundred  dollars,  or  imprisoned  not  exceed- 
ing six  months,  or  both,  at  the  discretion  of  said  Mayor,  or  Court. 

"  '  Sec.  3.  This  ordinance  to  take  effect  and  be  in  force  from  and 
after  its  passage.     Passed,  March  1,  A.  D.  lcS41. 

"'JoHs  C.  Bennett,  Mayor. 

" '  James  Sloan,  Recorder. 

"'PUBLIC  MEETING. 

'"According  to  previous  notice,  a  very  large  and  respectable 
meeting  of  the  citizens  of  the  city  of  Nauvoo  convened  at  the  Tem- 
ple ground,  on  Thursday,  the  2uth  day  of  May,  at  one  o'clock,  P.  M. 

"'The  meeting  was  called  to  order  by  General  Bennett,  on 
whose  motion  the  assembly  was  duly  organized  by  the  appointment 
of  General  Joseph  Smitli,  Chairman,  and  Colonel  James  Sloan, 
Secretary. 

'"The  object  of  the  meeting  was  then  stated,  in  a  speech  of  con- 
siderable length,  by  General  Smith,  distinctly  avowing  his  intention 
not  to  cooperate  or  vote  with  either  the  whig  or  democratic  parties, 
as  such. 

'"The  meeting  then  unanimously  disapproved  of  the  remarks  of 
the  Quincy  Whig,  in  relation  to  the  participation  of  General  Smith 
in  the  violent  death  of  Governor  Boggs,  of  Missouri,  and  unani- 
mously concurred  in  the  opinion  that  Cfeneral  Smith  had  never  made 
such  a  prediction. 

"'General  Bennett,  at  the  solicitation  of  the  Chairman,  then 
spoke  at  length  on  State  and  general  politics,  and  nominated  Sidney 
Rigdon  and  Orson  Pratt,  for  representatives  for  the  county  of  Han- 
cock, at  the  approaching  August  election,  which  nominations  were 
unanimously  concurred  in  by  the  assemblv. 

"  '  George  Miller  then  made  a  speech,  recommending  the  selection 
of  a  full  ticket,  which  was  concurred  in  ;  and  George  Miller  put  in 
nomination  for  the  State  Senate,  from  Hancock;  Hiram  Kimbnll, 
for  County  Commissioner;  and    William  Backenstos,  for    Sheriff". 


THE    DESIGNS    OF    MORMONISM.  159 

A  committee  was  then  appointed  to  take  the  names  of  the  legal 
voters  in  the  Nauvoo  precinct,  and  report  to  the  next  general  meet- 
ing of  the  people,  on  two  weeks  from  this  day,  at  the  same  time  and 
place. 

"  '  The  meeting  then  adjourned  for  two  weeks. 

"  '  Joseph  S.mith,   Chairman. 

"  '  James  Sloan,  Secretary.''  " 


The  Savgamo  Journal  of  July  8,  1842,  in  commenting 

upon  the  above  article,  says, — 

"  The  people  of  this  State  are  well  aware  of  the  fact,  that  the 
Mormon  College  at  Nauvoo  Jiave  conferred  on  J.  Gordon  Bennett, 
the  editor  of  the  New  York  Herald,  the  degree  of  Doctor  of  Laws. 
The  same  paper  has  been  selected  by  Joe  Smith  as  his  organ  in 
New  York  city ;  and  the  City  Council  of  Nauvoo,  by  resolutions, 
have  recommended  the  Herald  to  the  patronage  of  the  Mormon 
Church  throughout  the  country.  These  facts,  with  the  additional 
one  that  Joe  Smith,  by  some  of  his  followers,  carries  on  a  confi- 
dential    CORRESPONDENCE    WITH    THE    EDITOR    OF     THE    HlRALD, 

stamp  with  authority  the  statements  of  that  paper  in  relation  to  the 
policy  and  designs  of  Joe  Smith." 

Yes,  the  Neio  York  Herald  is  the  Mormon  official  organ 
in  the  eastern  metropolis,  and  its  alien  editor  the  premon- 
stration  of  the  Prophet  himself.  This,  together  with  his 
failing  to  obtain  the  printing  of  this  Expose,  as  contem- 
plated, will  account  for  the  gratuitous  vituperative  editorial 
attacks  of  that  "  Napoleon "  Editor  on  the  author  of 
this  work.  He  is  likely  to  be  the  Chancellor  of  the 
Exchequer  in  the  Cabinet  of  the  3Iormon  Autocratic 
Emperor  of  the  "  Western  Empire,"  and  perhaps  the 
Dauphin  to  the  regal  crown  I  Else  why  so  opposed  to 
every  thing  American  ?  The  Herald  Editor  is  a  Mormo- 
Catholic,  and  sustains  those  two  creeds  against  the  Prot- 
estant Christian  world.  That  able  man  could  employ  his 
fine  editorial  talents  to  much  better  advantage  in  the  ad- 
vocacy of  unsophisticated  truth. 


From  the  JVeic  York  Herald,  August  13,  1842. 

"RISING  IN  the  world, 

"  '  Since  you  will  buckle  Fortune  on  my  back, 
To  bear  her  burden  whe'er  I  vvill  or  no, 
I  must  have  patience  to  endure  the  load.' 

"  We  are  rising  very  rapidly  in  this  sinful  world.     A  short  time 
ago,  the  Corporation  of  Nauvoo,  Illinois,  conferred  upon  us  the  free- 


160  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

dom  of  the  citj'.  How  far  this  freedom  extends  we  know  not,  but 
we  suppose  it  embraces  a  vast  number  of  dklicious  privileges, 
according  to  the  Mormon  creed.  Tlie  next  step  was  to  raise  us  to  the 
dignity  of  LL.  D.,  a  regular  Doctor  of  Laws,  by  the  University  of 
Nauvoo,  an  honor  which  ice  highly  prize.,  and  which  is  as  good,  and 
perliaps  better,  than  that  conferred  on  General  Jackson  by  the  Uni- 
versity of  Harvard,  or  that  on  His  Excellency,  Edward  Everett,  by 
the  University  of  Cambridge,  in  England.  But  this  is  not  all.  Yes- 
terday, —  blessed  be  the  day  !  —  we  received  by  a  special  messenger 
from  Illinois,  the  intelligence  that  that  State  had  gone  entirely  lor 
the  Mormons  and  locofocos,  in  the  elections ;  and  also  an  enclosure 
which  contained  the  parchment,  cunferring  a  high  militanj  rank 
upon  vs,  of  which  document  tlie  following  is  a  true  copy  —  the 
original  being  in  our  salamander  safe,  with  the  titles  of  the  Herald 
building:  — 

'"Thomas  Carlin,  Governor  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  to  all  to 
whom  these  presents  shall  come,  greeting  : 

" '  Know  ye.  That  James  Gordon  Bennett  having  been  duly 
elected  to  the  office  of  Aid-de-Cainp  (with  the  rank  and  title  of  Briga- 
dier-General) to  the  Major- General  of  the  Nauvoo  Legion  of  the 
INIilitia  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  I,  Thomas  Carlin,  Governor  of  said 
State,  for  and  on  behalf  of  the  People  of  said  State,  do  commission 
him  Aid-de-Camp  to  said  Major-General,  with  rank  and  title  as  afore- 
said, to  take  rank  from  the  twenty-eighth  day  of  May,  1842.  He  is, 
therefore,  carefully  and  diligently  to  discharge  the  duties  of  said 
office,  by  doing  and  performing  all  manner  of  things  thereunto  be- 
longing; and  I  do  strictly  require  all  otiicers  and  soldiers  under 
his  command  to  be  obedient  to  his  orders ;  and  he  is  to  obey  such 
orders  and  directions  as  he  shall  receive  from  time  to  time  from  his 
Commander-in-Chief,  or  his  superior  officer. 

"  '  In  testimony  whereof,  I  have  hereunto  set  my  hand,  and  caused 
the  Great  Seal  of  State  to  be  hereunto  affixed.  Done  at  Springfield, 
this  second  day  of  June,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  eight 
hundred  and  forty-two,  and  of  the  Independence  of  the  United 
States  the  sixty-sixth. 

"'By  the  Governor,  "'Tho.  Carhn. 

"  '  Lyman  Trumbull,  Secretary  of  State.' 

"  There's  honor  —  there's  distinction  —  there's  salt  and  greens  for 
a  modest,  simple,  calm,  patient,  industrious  editor.  We  now  take 
legitimate  rank,  far  above  Colonel  Webb,  Major  Noah,  Colonel 
Stone,  General  George  P.  Morris,  or  all  the  nsilitary  editors  around 
and  about  the  country.  We  are  only  inferior  in  rank — and  that 
but  half  a  step — to  good  old  General  Jackson — he  being  Major- 
General  and  LL.  D.  — we  being  Brigadier  and  LL.  D.  also. 

"In  an  hour  after  the  arrival  of  this  precious  document,  but  be- 
fore I  received  it,  I  found  myself  two  inches  taller,  three  inches 
more  in  circumference,  and  so  wolfish  about  the  head  and  shoulders 
that  I  could  have  fought  a  duel  witli  Marshall,  provided  he  had 
given  me   the  same  terms  on  the  '  bandanna  handkerchief  plan ' 


THE    DESIGNS    OF    MORMONISM.  161 

that  he  generously  gave  to  Colonel  Webb.  It  was  no  doubt  caused 
by  the  military  title  approximating  to  its  owner.  '  God  tempers  the 
wind  to  the  shorn  lamb  '  —  the  devil  heats  the  fire  to  suit  the  sinner, 
and  I  must  bear  the  honors  that  are  thickening  around  me. 

"It  will  be  seen,  therefore,  that  I  am  Jid-de-Cainp,  with  the  rank 
of  Brigadier-General,  to  the  Major- General  of  the  famous  Nauvoo 
Legion.  This  Major-Gencral  is  no  less  a  man  than  the  Prophet  Joe 
Smith,  icho  is  very  busy  cstublishi/ig  an  original  religious  e.mpire 
in  the  iDcst,  that  may  swallow  np  all  the  other  different  sects  and  cLiquES, 
as  the  rod  of  Moses,  turned  into  a  serpent,  swallowed  up,  without 
salt,  the  rods  of  Janncs  and  Jambres,  and  the  otlier  magicians  of 
Egypt.  Heavens!  how  we  apples  swim,  as  the  sprat  said  to  the 
whale,  Mount  Etna  bawling  out  at  the  same  time, '  Let's  have  another 
segar.'  Wonders  will  never  cease.  Hereafter,  I  am  James  Gordon 
Bennett,  Freeman  of  the  Holy  City  of  Nauvoo,  LL.  D.  of  the 
University  of  Nauvoo,  and  Aid-de-Camp  to  the  Major- General,  and 
Brigadier-General  to  the  Nauvoo  Legion,  with  a  fair  prospect  of 
being  a  prophet  soon,  and  a  saint  in  heaven  hereafter." 

It  will  be  seen  by  the  foregoing  from  the  New  York 
Htrald  of  August  13,  1842,  (the  very  day  on  which 
"The  (Nauvoo)  Wasp"  published  the  famous  Algerine 
Habeas  Corpus  Ordinance,  (a  very  remarkable  coinci- 
dence,) that  the  Editor  of  the  Herald  (Joe's  official 
ORGAN  IN  THE  east)  has  been  constituted  one  of  the 
general  officers  of  the  Nauvoo  Legion  of  near  three 
thousand  regular  troops,  and,  as  one  of  the  Cabinet  Min- 
isters [the  Keeper  of  the  Privy  Seal)  of  the  Moumon 
Emperor,  fully  intrusted  with  the  secrets  of  the  Admin- 
istration :  consequently  all  who  do  not  savor  strongly  of 
MoRMONisM  may  expect  to  have  the  vials  of  the  HeraMs 
fierce  icrath  and  fiery  indignation  poured  out  upon  their 
devoted  heads,  uuthout  7nixture  and  in  great  fury.     Upas's 

RICHEST     SAP     WILL     NOT     BE     HALF     SO     DEADLY.         /    am 

prophet  enough  to  foretell  that.     So,  — 

"  Lay  on,  Macduff, 
And  damned  be  he  who  first  cries.  Hold  !  enough  !  " 


"  The  time  v/as  v/hen  we  supposed  Mormonism  too  great  an 
absurdity  to  be  received  by  any  person  of  common  sense,  who  be- 
lieved the  Bible.  But  we  know  no  system  of  error  was  ever  broached 
too  monstrous  to  be  believed,  by  any  one.  All  the  impostures  ever 
concocted,  have,  in  their  time,  had  their  advocates.  And  no  system 
of  fanaticism,  in  any  previous  age,  has  combined  so  many/aiaZerror.3 
14* 


162  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

as  this  Mormonism,  which  lias  been  delineated  in  these  extracts. 
Here  you  have  it,  as  plain  as  language  can  make  it,  that  Mormonism 
authorizes  and  approves  the  most  horrid  crimes  which  it  is  possible 
for  any  one  to  perpetrate.  Deception,  lying,  fraud,  theft,  plunder, 
arson,  treason,  and  murder,  are  among  tlic  crimes  which  have  char- 
acterized tliis  miserable  delusion. 

"  And  will  it  be  said  that  these  deluded  creatures  committed  these 
dreadful  crimes  in  self-defence?  Treason,  theft,  and  murder,  in  Pelf- 
dcfence  ?  What  kind  of  religion  is  that  which  leads  its  votary  to 
perpetrate  such  crimes  under  the  pretence  that  he  is  doing  it  in  self- 
defence  ?  The  truth  is.  Mormons  believe  that  the  whole  of  this  coun- 
try belongs,  of  right,  to  them  ;  and  they  are  training  their  followers, 
and  preparing  them,  to  obtain  possession  of  the  country,  either  by 
'  purciiase  or  by  blood.'  We  may  laugh  at  these  as  idle  pretensions, 
and  persuade  ourselves  that  they  cannot  amount  to  any  thing.  So 
the  good  people  of  the  west  thought ;  but  we  now  see  that  Mormon- 
ism has  actually  involved  one  portion  of  our  land  in  all  the  horrors 
of  a  civil  war.  And  what  it  has  done  in  Missouri  it  will  do  in  other 
places,  just  as  soon  as  it  can  find  a  sufficient  number  silly  enough 
to  yield  their  hearts  and  property  to  its  unreasonable,  unscriptural, 
and  wicked  claims."  —  Mormonisvi  Exposed,  pp.  63,  64. 


ORGANIZATION    AND    DOCTRINE    OF    THE 

MORMONS. 

Professor  Turner,  in  his  "  Mormonism  in  all  Ages," 
published  by  Piatt  and  Peters,  (from  which  I  quote  more 
liberally  than  I  otherwise  should,  in  order  to  give  my 
readers  a  fair  sample  of  the  great  ability  and  superior 
excellence  of  that  work,  the  purchase  of  which  I  strongly 
recommend  to  all  the  patrons  of  my  Expose,  as  being  one 
of  the  most  correct  expositions  of  the  Mormon  delusion 
now  extant,)  says,  — 

"  The  '  Latter  Day  Saints '  have  two  distinct  classes  of  argu- 
ments, which  they  advance  in  their  own  behalf.  One  class  is  to 
prove  the  divine  authority  of  Smith's  book,  the  other  to  show  the 
necessity  and  superiority  of  the  peculiar  organization,  doctrines, 
and  discipline,  of  their  Church. 

"  The  apostolic  and  democratic  simplicity  of  their  Church  gov- 
ernment will  first  claim  onr  attention. 

"  They  have  two  distinct  orders  of  church  dignitaries:  \.  The 
Melchizedf.c,  or  High  Priesthood,  consisting  of  High  Priests  and 
Elders ;  2.  The  Aaronic,  or  Lesser  Priesthood,  consisting  of  Bishops, 


ORGANIZATION    AND    DOCTRINE.  163 

Priests,  Teachers,  and  Deacons.  The  former  preside  over  the  spirit- 
ual interests  of  the  Church ;  the  latter  administer  its  ordinances,  and 
manage  its  temporal  concerns. 

"  Three  of  the  Melchizedec  or  High  Priests  are  appointed  Presi- 
dents, to  preside  over  all  the  churches  in  all  the  world.  They  are 
called  the  First  Prcsidenrij. 

"  The  church  in  Jackson  county,  Mo.,  is  called  '  Zion,'  and  is 
still  tu  become  the  great  centre,  both  of  gathering  and  of  ruhng ;  at 
least  «o  says  Smitli's  divinity.  Governor  Boggs  seems  to  be  of  a  dif- 
ferent opinion.     Which  knows  best,  it  is  hard  to  say. 

"  Other  churches,  established  by  revelations  given  to  Smith,  are 
called  '  Stakes  of  Zion,'  or  simply  '  Stakes.'  Hence  the  Utakcs  at 
Kirtland,  Nauvoo,  &c. 

"  Each  of  these  Stakes,  also,  is  ruled  by  a  subordinate  Presidency, 
of  three  High  Priests,  whose  jurisdiction  is  confined  to  the  limits  of 
the  Stake. 

"  TJic  divine  appointment  of  these  Stakes,  in  new  regions,  gives  a 
fine  opportunity  of  speculating  in  town  lots. 

"  They  have  also  a  High  Council,  consisting  of  twelve  High 
Priests,  and  constituting  the  court  of  ultimate  appeal,  at  each  Stake. 
The  Bishop  and  his  two  Counsellors,  from  the  Lesser  Priesthood,  con- 
stitute the  court  of  immediate  jurisdiction,  for  the  first  trial  of  trans- 
gressors, and  for  administering  things  temporal  at  each  Stake. 

"  A  travelling  High  Council,  consisting  also  of  twelve  High  Priests, 
and  called  the  '  Twelve  Jlpostles,'  are  sent  forth  with  power  to  preach 
the  gospel  to  all  the  world,  and  to  discipline  and  govern  all  un 
organized   churches.      One   of  these    is   called    '  President   of  the 
Twelve.' 

"  The  first,  second,  and  third  '  Seventies,'  consisted  of  seventy 
Elders  each,  whose  duty  it  was  to  preach  the  Mormon  gospel  abroad, 
under  the  direction  of  the  Twelve  Apostles. 

"  In  addition  to  these  dignitaries,  there  is  an  innumerable  host  of 
Bishops,  Elders,  Priests,  Deacons,  &c.,  employed  by  the  Church, 
either  to  edify  the  '  Saints  '  at  home,  or  to  gain  proselytes  abroad. 
Each  of  these  furnishes  himself  with  the  Book  of  Covenants  and 
Pratt's  Voice  of  Warning,  from  which  they  are  soon  able  to  acquire 
at  once  their  proof-texts,  their  logic,  and  their  faith. 

"  The  First  Presidency,  the  High  Council,  and  each  of  the  Sev- 
enties, have  the  right  to  discipline  their  own  members,  within  their 
respective  limits,  and  a  decision  of  either  body  is  final,  and  rever- 
sible only  at  the  General  Council  of  all  the  bodies  conjointly. 

"  The  High  Priests,  Elders,  and  Priests,  travel  and  preach;  but 
Teachers  and  Deacons  are  the  stationary  officers  of  the  Church. 

"  All  these  functionaries  are  created,  and,  according  to  the  doc- 
trine and  teaching  of  Smith,  can  be  removed,  at  any  time,  by  the 
voice  of  their  constituents,  the  people. 

"  All  this  is  so  purely  and  beautifully  democratic,  that  the  Saints 
seem  to  forget  that  their  democratic  monarch.  Smith,  has  reserved 
exclusively  to  himself  the  sole  right  of  receiving  and  promulgating 
revelations  from  the  Lord,  touching  even  the  most  minute  of  all  the 
interests  of  the  Church,  to  which,  of  course,  they  are  ever  to  yield 


164  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

the  most  implicit  obedience,  on  penalty  of  eternal  damnation. 
Hence  —  though,  as  Smith  tells  them,  all  these  functionaries  are 
merely  their  servants  —  Joe  Smith  himself  is  virtually  the  God  both 
of  them  and  their  servants,  for  his  voice  is  the  voice  of  God  in  all 
things,  great  and  small,  whenever  he  chooses  to  call  it  so;  and  that, 
too,  in  spite  of  the  command  of  God,  given  March,  1829,  and  found 
in  the  Book  of  Covenants,  158.  By  turning  to  that  same  revelation, 
as  it  stands  on  the  tenth  page  of  the  first  edition  of  the  Book  of 
Commandments,  published  in  1833,  before  the  Prophet  saw  fully 
what  powers  it  would  be  convenient  for  him  to  assume  in  the 
Church,  the  reader  will  see  that,  at  the  end  of  the  second  verse, 
God  commands  Smith  to  pretend  to  '  no  other  gift  '  except  to  trans- 
late, and  cxpressl}'  declares  that  he  will  '■grant  him  no  other  gift.' 
Doubtless  the  Prophet  thought  this  sufficient  at  the  time.  But,  in 
publishing  the  second  edition,  two  years  after,  it  was  found  expe- 
dient to  add  a  saving  clause  or  two,  so  as  effectually  to  annihilate  at 
once  the  command  and  the  promise,  and  leave  Smith  still  free  to 
usurp  whatever  power  he  pleased.  The  second  edition  is  made 
to  read  thus :  '  I  have  commanded  that  you  should  pretend  to 
no  other  gift '  (save  to  translate)  '  until  my  purpose  is  faljilled  in 
this,'  '  for  1  will  grant  you  no  other  gift  vntil  it  is  finished.'  The 
words  in  Italics  are  interpolated  in  the  second  edition,  but  not  found 
in  the  first.  Doubtless  this  was  a  mere  correction  of  the  type,  like 
the  taking  away  of  a  whole  page  of  the  preface  from  the  second 
edition  of  the  Book  of  Mormon.  Smith  did  not  see  the  necessity 
of  correcting  the  type  in  '33,  but  in  '35  it  became  apparent.  The 
power  of  a  simple  translator  was  too  narrow  for  the  exigency  of  the 
times.  It  would  have  been  well  for  the  world  if  Smith's  divinity, 
instead  of  giving  him  a  pair  of  stone  spectacles,  had  given  him  a 
divine  printer,  and  a  divine  press,  and  such  types  that  he  might 
have  been  enabled  to  fix  the  meaning  of  his  inspired  revelations,  so 
that  it  would  be  possible  to  let  them  stand,  at  least  two  years,  witliout 
abstracting,  interpolating,  altering,  or  garbling,  to  suit  the  times. 
But  the  ways  of  Smith's  providence  are  indeed  mysterious.  We 
will  not  pretend  to  judge.  The  Prophet  needed  other  gifts,  and  he 
took  them  ;  not  by  piecemeal,  but  by  wholesale ;  or  rather,  he  had 
already  taken  them  before. 

"  In  a  revelation  given  to  Smith,  April  6,  1S30,  the  very  day  the 
first  Mormon  church  of  six  was  organized  at  Fayette,  New  York,* 
Smith  is  appointed  '  Seer,  TransUitor,  Prophet,  Apostle  of  Jesus 
Christ,  and  Elder  of  the  Church,  through  the  will  of  God,  the 
Father,  and  the  grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.'  He  is  also  de- 
clared to  be  '  inspired  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  to  lay  the  foundation  of 
the  Church,  and  build  it  up  in  the  most  holy  faith  ;  '  and  the  Church 
is  commanded  to  keep  ti  perpetual  j-trord  of  these  titles. 

"  '  Wherefore,  the  Church  shall  give  heed  to  all  his  words  and  com- 
mandments, which  he  shall  give  unto  you  :  for  his  word  shall  ye 
receive,  as  if  from  mine  own  mouth,  in  all  patience  and  faith.'  Again, 
on  page  88,  the  First  President  is  to  preside  over  the  whole  Church, 

*  B.  C,  177. 


ORGANIZATION  AND  DOCTRINE.         165 

and  be  like  unto  Moses,  to  be  a  Seer,  Revelator,  Translator,  Prophet, 
having  all  the  gifts  which  God  bestows  upon  the  head  of  the 
Church. 

"  These  are  the  moderate  qualifications,  indispensable,  in  order  to 
be  even  a  candidate  for  the  office  of  First  President  of  the  Mormon 
Church.  But,  in  a  revelation  given  February,  1831,  page  126, 
Smith's  divinity  confers  on  him  not  only  the  exclusive  right  to  receive 
and  give  fortli  commanduaents  from  the  Lord,  but  also  power  to 
appoint  his  successor  ;  and  the  Church  are  commanded  to  '  uphold 
him,  to  appoint  him,  to  provide  him  food  and  raiment,  and  ichatsoever 
things  he  needeth  to  accomplish  his  work,'  with  threats  for  disobe- 
dience, as  usual.  Hence,  none  but  Smith,  or  his  appointed  suc- 
cessor, can  ever  be  elected  to  stand  at  the  head  of  the  Church,  with- 
out direct  disobedience  and  rebellion  against  the  Mormon  God,  that 
is,  Joe  Smith. 

"  In  a  revelation  of  September,  1831,  page  145,  all  Smith's  dio-ni- 
ties  and  titles  are  conferred  on  him  for  life.  True,  he  may  be 
removed  for  misconduct;  but  who  is  to  judge  .''  The  Lord,  surely; 
but  by  whose  mouth  ':  By  the  mouth  of  his  servant,  Joseph  Smith  ! 
This  is  first-rate  democracy,  to  say  nothing  of  apostolic  humility  and 
simplicity. 

"  In  a  revelation,  page  111,  the  world  is  informed  of  what  they 
very  well  knew  before,  that  Joe  Smith  '■had  no  strength  to  icork,' 
though  he  is  one  of  the  best  wrestlers  in  the  county.  Therefore 
the  churches  are  commanded  to  support  him,  with  the  usual  bene- 
dictions and  cursings.  See  also  Book  of  Commandments,  181, 
where  the  Church  are  commanded  to  obey  him,  even  as  Aaron. 
By  comparing  also  the  revelation  on  page  214  with  the  '  Times  and 
Seasons,'  Vol.  II.,  No.  7,  pages  305  and  307,  the  reader  will  see  that 
Smith  has  the  power  of  holding  the  keys  of  the  kingdom  of  God 
forever,  and  that  this  is  only  the  modest  power  of  eternal  salvation 
or  damnation  over  the  flock,  the  same  as  is  arrogated  by  the  spiritual 
descendant  of  St.  Peter  at  Rome,  and  is  to  be  perpetuated  to  the 
spiritual  descendants  of  brother  Jose,  tire  democratic  General  at 
Nauvoo. 

"  So  much  for  the  beautiful  symmetry,  simplicity,  and  freedom  of 
Mormon  democracy,  and  the  admirable  consistency,  humility,  pa- 
tience, and  self-denial  of  their  servant,  ihl^  Prophet  Joseph  Smith, 
Jr.,  General  of  Nauvoo  Mihtia,  and  head  of  the  Church  throughout 
the  earth. 

"  According  to  reports  from  England,  it  appears  that  they  there 
have  about  one  church  dignitary,  of  some  sort,  to  every  ten  private 
members.  In  the  early  history  of  the  Church  in  this  country,  the 
proportion  was  much  greater.  Here  lies  the  secret  of  their  success  ; 
every  thing  in  the  shape  of  a  man,  that  can  walk  and  carry  his 
catechisms,  is  forthwith  dubbed  High  Priest,  Elder,  or  Apostle,  (or 
something  large,)  and  sent  forth  to  trudge  and  beg,  with  a  single 
comrade,  in  quest  of  adventure  and  proselytes.  This  arrangement 
operates  at  once  as  a  motive  and  a  means  of  conquest.  Every 
ejected  or  discontented  dunce,  in  other  denominations,  feels  sure 
that,  if  he  joins  the  Mormons,  he  shall  be   dubbed  a  knight  of  the 


166  HISTORY   OF    THE    SAINTS. 

altar,  and  may  in  turn  trudge  forth  in  quest  of  new  apostles,  until 
perchance  he  tires  in  his  new  labors,  or  fails  of  his  full  sliare  of 
blushing  honors,  dofl's  the  badges  of  the  apostle  for  the  sackcloth  of 
the  apostate,  and  yields  up  his  faith  in  Joe  Smith,  for  faitli  in  nothing 
save  his  own  folly  and  delusion. 

"  We  will  next  consider  some  of  the  fundamental  doctrines  of  the 
Church. 

"1.  The  nature  of  faith.  Their  doctrines,  on  this  fundamental 
item  of  all  religion,  may  be  seen  at  large  in  the  first  part  of  the  Book 
of  Covenants.  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  faith,  or  rational  belief, 
in  tilings  not  seen,  is  the  foundation  of  all  power,  all  energy,  all 
efficiency,  and  all  good,  temporal  and  eternal,  so  far  as  man  is  con- 
cerned. But  when  we  are  referred  to  Heb.  xi.  3,  to  prove  that  faith 
enabled  God  to  create  the  world,  it  shocks  all  reason,  and  all  com- 
mon sense.  The  apostle  tells  us  that  ?rc  understand  it  through  faith, 
not  that  God  created  the  loorld  through  faith. 

"  Most  will  admit  also,  that  it  is  probable  that  the  first  idea  of  a 
Supreme  Being  has  travelled  down  from  Adam,  to  whom  it  was 
given  by  direct  revelation.  But  does  it  follow  from  this,  that  our 
belief  in  a  Supreme  Being  rests,  either  in  whole  or  in  part,  on  mere 
human  testimony  ?  Doubtless  our  parents  first  suggested  to  our 
minds  the  idea  of  a  supreme  Divinity.  But  with  the  heavens  over 
our  heads,  and  the  earth  under  our  feet,  all  declaring  and  demon- 
strating his  being,  and  glory,  and  power,  do  we  still  believe  it  on 
the  bare  ground  of  human  testimony.'  If  so,  we  must  be  dolts  in- 
deed. This  is  as  though  one  should  maintain  that  his  belief  in  the 
existence  of  the  sun  rested  on  human  testimony,  because,  forsooth, 
his  father  happened  first  to  point  it  out  to  him. 

"  The  writer  next  proceeds  to  show  that  we  also  come  to  the 
knowledge  of  the  moral  attributes  of  God  by  revelations  made  to 
men,  which  we  receive  on  the  mere  ground  of  human  testimony. 
This  is  like  believing  that  the  sun  is  warm,  because  our  grandfathers 
sat  under  his  beams  and  have  told  us  so.  Suppose  that  we  found, 
from  our  own  actual  individual  experience,  that  God  was,  in  all 
possible  ways,  constantly  endeavoring  to  deceive  and  torment  us, 
instead  of  endeavoring  to  do  us  good,  hour  by  hour,  and  day  by  day ; 
should  we,  forsooth,  in  that  case,  believe  that  he  was  wise,  and 
good,  and  holy,  because  *he  had  condescended  to  tell  our  grand- 
fathers so .''  No;  —  we  believe  that  God  is  good,  not  on  human 
testimony,  nor  yet  on  his  own  testimony,  for  we  must  first  knmo 
that  he  is  good,  before  we  can  rationally  believe  a  word  he  says. 
But  we  believe  that  he  is  good,  because  we  observe  and  experience 
the  results  of  his  goodness  in  our  own  persons  every  hour  of  our 
lives. 

"  We  have  been  more  explicit  in  our  remarks  on  the  first  four 
lectures  on  faith,  because  we  perceive  here  a  sort  of  entering  wedge 
to  the  whole  system  of  Mormonism.  The  absurd  and  contemptible 
sophisms,  in  these  four  chapters  on  faith,  are  intended  to  lie  as  an 
immovable  foundation  to  tlie  whole  system.  Hence,  bj^  a  sort  of 
logical  agony,  the  profound  effort  was  made,  by  beginning  away 
back  at  the  creation,  with  the  fundamental  idea  of  a  first  cause,  and 


ORGANIZATION    AND    DOCTRINE,  167 

gradually  and  carefully  creeping  along  up,  with  their  new  doctrine 
of  faith,  through  all  the  divine  attributes,  to  the  sublime  conclusion, 
that  all  religious  faith  does  and  must,  from  the  very  nature  of  tliino-s 
rest  on  the  contemptible  foundation  of  vicrc  human  testiiiioiuj.  ijut 
the  final  end,  the  inevitable  conclusion,  from  all  this  Jesuitical 
sophistry,  is  cautiously  and  prudently  suppressed,  until  a  more 
suitable  opportunity  for  its  development.  We  think  it  a  o-ood  time 
now  to  drag  this  detestable  inference  forth  from  its  hiding-place,  and 
to  present  the  whole  syllogism  in  broad  daylight,  where  all  men  may 
at  once  both  see  and  detest,  not  only  the  sophism,  but  the  meanness 
of  its  authors.  It  is  this:  All  faith,  even  in  a  Supreme  Beintr, 
rests  of  necessity  on  mere  human  testimony  for  its  foundation. 
Ergo,  (now  comes  the  real  inference,  meanly  suppressed,)  therefore 
you  MUST  BELIEVE  IN  JoE  S.MiTH,  Martin  Harris,  Oliver  Cow- 
der}-,  and  David  Whitmer,  or  whatever  other  '  knaves,  dupes,  or 
debauchees,'  choose  to  draw  on  a  long  face  and  come  to  you  in  the 
name  of  the  Lord. 

"  This  is  the  sublime  logic  of  the  first  four  chapters  on  faith  ! ! 
And  the  knavery  and  hypocrisy  of  omitting  the  necessary,  inevita- 
ble, and  intended  inference  from  the  whole,  are  surel}'  not  the  least 
detestable  parts  of  the  effort. 

"  We  believe  neither  in  God,  nor  in  his  attributes,  nor  in  any  part 
or  portion  of  divine  revelation,  on  the  ground  of  mere  human  testi- 
mony, and  we  never  shall,  so  long  as  we  retain  our  common  sense; 
but  we  believe  in  all  these  on  much  higher  ground  than  the  mere 
conjoint  testimony  of  even  the  whole"  human  race,  as  has  been 
shown. 

"  Much  less  shall  v/e  believe  in  the  testimony  of  those  whom  this 
professed  Prophet  of  the  Lord  himself  has  pronounced  'liars,  deb- 
auchees, and  asses.'  Nor  shall  we  believe  in  the  lying,  money- 
digging,  drunken  deceiver,  who  duped  them  to  give  their  testimony 
to  such  contemptible  gibberish  as  the  Book  of  Mormon. 

"  The  reader  will  pardon  our  extended  notice  of  this  puerile  doc- 
trine of  faith.  It  is  not  worth  discussing,  I  am  well  aware;  but  I 
had  the  edification  of  the  Saints  in  view.  ^  Besides,  it  is  fundamental 
in  Mormonism,  as  well  as  in  some  other  fanaticisms. 

"  The  fourth  lecture  on  faith  treats  of  the  Trinity,  or  rather  of 
the  Duality,  as  they  explain  it.  We  connnend  it  to  the  careful 
perusal  of  those  who  think  they  can  understand  and  explain  the 
precise  mode  in  which  the  Supreme  Intelligence  of  the  universe 
exists,  as  readily  as  they  can  the  properties  of  an  ellipse  or  a  triangle, 
and  who  are  enabled  to  expound  and  adjust  all  the  powers  and'^re- 
lations  of  the  Trinity,  with  the  same  facility  that  they  can  the  vari- 
ous compartments  of  an  hour-glass. 

"  We  presume  a  criticism  on  this  paragrapii  of  Mormon  faith, 
from  such  exalted  geniuses,  who,  by  the  mystic  aid  of  '  substances ' 
and  '  essences,'  are  enabled  to  solve  what  angels  cannot  compre- 
hend, would  be  amusing,  if  not  important  to  the  public.  We  leave 
it  to  them. 

"  In  the  sixth  lecture  on  faith,  the  proposition  is  announced  and 


168  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

maintained,  that  men  know  their  acceptance  with  God  '  only  through 
the  medium  of  the  sacrifice  of  all  eartlilv  things.'     Verse  7. 

'•  In  tlie  first  place,  we  would  inquire,  WJiat  is  meant  b\'  '  the 
sacrifice  of  all  earthly  things,'  if  our  eternal  reward  is  to  consist  in 
snnilar  things  —  eternal  cities,  eternal  gold,  and  eternal  farms,  in- 
stead of  temporal  cities,  gold,  and  farms?  Again  :  Are  tliese  sacri- 
fices of  all  worldly  things  to  be  made  at  the  bidding  of  Jne  Smith 
and  his  counsellors?  Are  we  to  yield  them  up  to  God  through  their 
hands,  or  are  we  not? 

"  The  language  of  these  exhortations  would  be  well  enough,  were 
the}'  not  in  known  connection  with  the  ends  and  aims  of  Smith  and 
his  comrades.  But  as  it  is,  the  plain  meaning  is  this:  You  nmst 
give  up  all  worldly  things  to  God,  as  an  indispensable  condition  of 
salvation.  Very  well  —  agreed.  But  who  is  to  inform  us  of  what 
things  God  has  need  ?  Wh}',  the  Lord's  Prophet  at  Nauvoo,  to  be 
sure.  And  to  whom  are  we  to  pay  it  over?  To  the  Lord's  servants 
at  Nauvoo.  ,^U  our  wealth,  according  to  the  first  edition  of  the 
Book  of  Covenants,  and  part  of  it  only,  according  to  the  second 
edition.  Very  well.  All  this  is  nice.  We  think  v,-e  will  take  our 
chance  of  salvation  on  some  other  ground. 

"  This  lecture  on  the  sacrifice  of  all  things,  we  are  informed,  is 
so  plain,  that  the  customary  catechism  upon  it  at  the  end  is  deemed 
unnecessary.  We  have  supplied  one,  with  appropriate  ansM"ers, 
which  we  would  respectfully  commend  to  the  '  Saints,'  to  be  ap- 
pended to  the  next  edition  of  this  plausible  lecture.  It  would  con- 
stitute a  better  typographical  correction  than  the  Prophet  is  wont  to 
make  in  liis  revelations,  even  where  he  adds  whole  pao-es  to  the 
original  text.  The  student  is  also  advised,  by  the  Mormons,  to 
commit  the  whole  lecture  to  memory,  it  is  so  important.  We  ad- 
vise him  to  do  tlie  same,  and  to  take  our  catechism  with  it,  since 
ihe  Prophet  has  supplied  none.  The  concluding,  seventh  lecture 
on  faith  we  would  also  commend  to  theological  m3'stics  and  S3-stem- 
mongers  of  all  creeds.  Faith  here  is  made  to  mount  up  into  regions 
,\'here  they  delight  to  soar.  We  fear  we  should  fall  from  the  giddy 
•aeight.  We  choose,  then,  to  stand  on  terra  firma,  and  stretch  up 
our  necks,  to  see  how  other  geese  rise  and  fly  through  these  aerial 
heights. 

"  We  have  already  noticed  the  fundamental  dogma  and  final  ex- 
hortation of  Mormonism,  and  of  all  other  spurious  creeds,  viz., 
You  must  believe  on  mere  human  testimony,  and  then  give  all  you 
have  to  God's  appointed  witnesses  of  the  faith ;  we  have  dragged 
them  forth  from  their  lurking-places  by  the  incipient  catechism  on 
faith,  and  that  is  all  we  can  do  at  present. 

"  The  next  move  of  the  Mormons,  after  having  thus  got  a  firm 
foothold  upon  the  credulity  of  their  followers,  is  to  remove  one  in- 
superable objection  to  their  scheme,  ■viz.,  utter  want  of  all  accred- 
ited or  rational  evidence  that  it  is  from  God.  This  they  do,  by 
denying  that  the  miracles  of  the  Bible  were  wrought  of  old  by  God, 
in  attestation  of  the  veracity  of  his  servants,  before  the  world ;  but 
they  affirm  that  they  were  wrought  simply  for  the  benefit  of  those 
who  believe,  or  the  Saints. 


ORGANIZATION  AND  DOCTRINE.         169 

"  To  prove  this,  instead  of  taking  tlie  Bible  literally,  where  Moses 
is  said  to  have  wrought  signs  to  sliow  that  he  was  commissioned  of 
God,  and  also  in  John  x.  37,  xv.  24,  Acts  ii.  3,  and  numberless 
other  passages,  on  almost  every  page  of  the  Bible,  where  even 
Christ  himself  is  represented  as  commanding  the  Jews  not  to  take 
nim  at  his  word,  but  to  look  at  iiis  works,  or  miracles,  because  '  lie 
that  beareth  witness  of  himself  is  not  true  ; '  all  these  they  virtually 
deny,  or  contradict,  and  then  tell  us  that  they  take  them  literally. 
Still,  they  contend  that  there  can  be  no  true  church  on  earth,  witli- 
out  prophets,  apostles,  power  of  miracles,  gifts  of  tongues,  of  heal- 
ing, etc.  etc.,  and  that  tlieir  Church  alone  possesses  these. 

"  These  extravagant  dogmas  and  absurd  claims,  common  to  all 
nnpostors,  in  all  ages,  they  base  on  the  following  passages  of  Scrip- 
ture. It  is  said  in  Mark  xvi.  17,  '  These  signs  shall  follow  ihem 
that  believe,'  (enumerating  the  signs.)  Tliey  fall  into  a  mistake 
here,  which  is  common  to  them  and  all  other  fanatics,  viz.,  that  of 
understanding  all  that  was  said  by  Christ  and  his  apostles  to  their 
hearers,  as  of  course  said  to  them.  Hence  they  infer  that  these  sio-ns 
were  to  follow,  not  only  those  who  believed  on  the  twelve  apostles, 
as  the  text  literally  asserts,  and  as  was  the  case  at  the  day  of  Pente- 
cost, and  on  various  other  occasions,  but,  forsooth,  they  maintain 
that  these  signs  were  to  follow  all  those  who  should  afterwards  be- 
lieve the  gospel,  in  all  ages  of  the  ivorld,  which  the  text  does  not 
assert.  This  they  call  a  literal  interpretation.  But  when  we  grant 
them  this  position,  and  say,  Very  well ;  bravo!  now  show  us  the 
signs,  and  we  will  beli.eve;  their  ready  reply  is,  'A  wicked  and 
adulterous  generation  seeketh  for  a  sign,  and  verily  there  shall  no 
sign  be  given  them ; '  and  here  tiiey  stop,  forgetting  to  refer  us  to 
any  past  or  future  sign,  as  the  Savior  referred  those  whom  he  re- 
buked in  this  passage,  because  they  had  before  refused  to  look  at 
the  multitude  of  signs  he  had  already  given  them. 

"  And  now,  for  a  long  time,  the  teeth  of  the  Mormons  have  been 
chattering  with  the  ague,  induced  by  the  trials  of  poverty  and  want, 
1»hich  have  been  brought  upon  them  by  their  frequent  removals 
from  place  to  place,  and  the  stone  temple,  bank  stock,  mercantile, 
prairie  land,  and  tavern-house  speculations  of  the  Lord's  Prophet 
and  his  compeers  ;  and  their  teeth  still  chatter,  and  tlieir  bones  still 
burn  and  ache,  though  they  alone,  of  all  others,  possess  the  mirac- 
ulous gifts  of  healing,  given,  as  we  are  assured,  for  the  express 
purpose  of  comforting  the  Saints  on  earth,  and  for  no  other  purpose. 

"  But  all  this,  we  are  told,  is  because,  forsooth,  after  ten  years' 
trial,  they  cannot  bring  their  faith  up  to  the  sticking-point  necessary 
to  cure  this  ague.  And  yet  we  are  told  that  sometimes  they  achieve 
wonders  with  the  hysterics  and  the  'blues,'  which  we  believe  are 
the  only  kind  of  devils  they  have  ever  succeeded  in  casting  out. 

"  We  are  assured,  also,  that  there  can  be  no  church,  without 
prophets  and  apostles.  We  ask  them  to  prophesy ;  and  the  Prophet, 
in  1831,  points  us  to  the  destruction  wliich  awaits  the  Mormons  m 
the  eastern  country,  and  withdraws  thern  from  impending  ruin  to 
Mount  Zion,  Jackson  county,  Missouri,  the  everlasting  possession 

15 


170  HISTORY   OF   THE    SAINTS. 

of  the  Saints,  the  fairie  land  of  Mormon  faith,  Mormon  peace,  and 
Mormon  bliss.* 

"  We  ask  tiiem,  Whom  did  the  apostles  appoint  as  their  suc- 
cessors in  their  apostleship,  and  whether  it  was  not  their  fault  that 
the  office  ended  with  them?     The  Mormons  make  no  reply. 

"Again,  we  ask.  Who  is  empowered  to  revive  the  long-lost 
succession .''  All  caps  are  thrown  up,  and  all  voices  at  once  shout, 
'Joe  Smith  !  Joe  Smith  !  i  He  is  the  Prophet  of  the  Lord  !  '  He 
holds  both  the  keys  and  the  cash  of  the  Church,  though,  as  we  have 
seen,  he  once,  in  time  of  danger,  committed  the  sword  to  his  favorite 
mastift". 

"  To  cap  the  climax  of  these  absurdities,  Parley  Pratt  contends 
that  the  general  commission  referred  to  in  Mark,  to  preach  the  gos- 
pel, was  limited  to  those  who  heard  it,  while  the  many  signs  that 
were  to  follow  are  granted  to  all  coming  generations  !  I  So  tliat, 
wliile  we  must  all  wait  for  a  new  revelation  to  preach,  we  all  have 
liberty  to  cast  out  devils  as  soon  as  we  believe  !  !  t  I  hope  he  will  not 
complain  that  I  have  omitted  the  former,  and  am  trying  my  hand  at 
the  latter. 

"  They  next  refer  to  1  Cor.  xii.,  which  they  expound  witii  mar- 
vellous ability. 

"  From  the  rear  of  this  invaluable  breastwork  of  logic.  Parley 
opens  an  inspired  cannonade  of  commingled  metaphysics,  eloquence, 
and  pathos,  and  concludes  with  the  prayer  '  that  the  vision  should 
be  shut  up  ; '  in  which  prayer,  all  men  of  common  sense,  I  presume, 
will  heartily  unite.     So  here  we  drop  it. 

'•  I  would  just  suggest  that  he  and  all  other  Mormons  have 
forgotten  to  read  and  interpret,  literally,  tlie  apostle's  argument 
through,  to  the  end  of  the  13th  chapter  of  J  Corinthians.  Tlicy 
are  particularly  silent  upon  that  verse  in  wliich  tlie  apostle  says, 
literally,  that  prophecies  shall  fail,  and  tongues  shall  cease,  and  all 
else  but  faith,  (not  Mormon  faith,  we  presume,)  hope,  and  cliarity. 

"  The  outlines  of  their  despotic  hierarchy  have  already  been  pre- 
sented. The  names  indeed  of  their  several  orders  and  offices  are 
found  in  the  Scriptures.  But  that  the  name  is  nothing,  and  the 
powers  of  an  office  every  thing,  some  other  apostolic  sects  would  do 
well  to  learn,  as  well  as  the  Mormons.  We  look  in  vain  for  the 
origin  of  the  definite  powers  of  such  hierarchies,  baptized  with  Scrip- 
ture names,  except  in  the  crania  of  their  respective  godfathers.  In 
this  case,  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  General  of  Nauvoo  Militia,  happens 
to  be  the  man. 

"The  system  also  establishes  a  somewhat  more  perfect  despotism 
than  has  been  reached  by  any  other  hierarchy.  It  concentrates  all 
power  in  the  person  of  the  valorous  translator.  This  is  the  principal 
difference  between  the  Joe  Smith  of  Illinois,  and  other  Joe  Smiths 
who  have  trodden  the  path  of  hierarchal  fame  before  him.  They, 
one  and  all,  from  Pope    Linus  downward,  demonstrate  the  divine 

*  See  B.  C,  p.  151,  12 ;  p.  190,  2  j  p.  192,  1 ;  p.  194,  9 ;  p.  139,  11,  12,  13  ;  p. 
154,  1,2. 

t  See  Voice  of  Warning,  p.  112. 


OKGANIZATION    AND   DOCTRINE.  171 

origin  of  their  religious  oligarcliies  from  Scripture,  because,  forsooth, 
the  names  with  which  they  have  chosen  to  christen  their  several 
functionaries  are  found  in  that  sacred  volume.  The  progress  whicli 
Joseph  has  made  in  the  divine  favor,  since  the  typographical  cor- 
rection of  that  unlucky  revelation,  '  Thou  shalt  aspire  to  no  other 
gift,  save  to  translate,'  may  be  seen  from  an  enumeration  of  his 
accumulating  titles  in  the  Book  of  Covenants,  177  and  8d,  also 
at  the  close  of  the  former. 

"  The  next  chapter  on  the  fundamental  doctrines  of  Mormonism, 
which  we  shall  notice,  is  '  the  witness  of  the  Spirit,'  as  they  term  it. 
This  is  always  the  last  resort.  After  running  the  whole  round  of 
argument,  discussing  the  merits  of  Joseph's  bough,  and  its  literal 
leap  across  the  wall  of  the  Atlantic  Ocean;  glancing  at  the  upspring- 
ing  truth  and  downlooking  righteousness  of  David ;  brandishing, 
with  triumphant  flourishes,  the  two  sticks  of  Ezekiel ;  gazing  at  the 
angel  flying  away  with  the  Book  of  Mormon ;  and  having  appealed 
to  Mark's  limited  charter  for  preaching  tlie  gospel,  and  general  per- 
mission to  cast  out  devils,  there  is  a  solemn  pause.  You  ask  for  a 
sign  ;  but  verily  no  sign  shall  be  given  you.  You  demand  proof; 
the  ready  reply  is,  '  I  know  that  Mormonism  is  true,  for  God  has 
revealed  it  to  me,  in  my  soul.'  Very  good ;  but  how  shall  I  know 
it.'  'Ask  in  faith,  as  I  have  done,  and  it  shall  be  given  you.' 
That  is,  first  believe  it,  then  ask,  and  then  you  shall  know  it  is  true. 
To  require  this  process  is  much  the  same  as  to  require  one  to  eat  his 
dinner  raw,  and  to  cook  it  afterwards. 

"  By  this  patent  mode  of  procedure,  both  Pratt  and  Rigdon  assure 
us  that  they  discovered  ultimately  that  what  they  had  at  first  pro- 
nounced a  base  fabrication,  was  indeed  a  new  and  wonderful  revela- 
tion from  God.  It  should  be  noticed,  here,  that  asking  in  faith, 
according  to  the  Book  of  Covenants,  is  actual  believing;  for' where 
doubt  and  uncertainty  is,'  say  they,  '  there  faith  is  not,  nor  can  be.'  * 
Doubtless  any  one  might  discover  the  truth  of  any  thing  in  the 
same  way. 

"  The  fanatical  doctrine  of  the  Spirit  is  more  fully  discussed  upon 
another  page.t  We  only  repeat,  here,  that  the  man  who  neglects  the 
employment  of  the  written  word,  natural  reason,  and  conscience, 
which  God  has  given  him  for  his  guidance,  and  yields  himself  up  to 
his  own  internal  impulses  and  fantasies,  from  that  moment  throws 
himself  out  from  under  the  guidance  of  God,  and  yields  himself  up 
to  the  guidance  of  darkness  and  delusion.  And  the  spirit  of  darkness 
will  not  be  slow  to  instruct  and  guide  him  in  whatever  way  he  sees 
fit.  He  will  soon  know,  with  dogmatical  assurance,  every  thing  in 
the  universe,  save  one,  viz.,  that  he  himself  has  become  a  religious 
lunatic,  bereft  of  all  common  sense. 

"  I  have  reserved  one  choice  specimen  of  '  Mormon  logic  and 
literal  interpretation  of  the  Scriptures,'  with  which  to  grace  the 
climax  of  this  Mormon  Babel.  I  have  done  this,  partly  because  it 
holds  and  deserves  the  highest  place  in  the  system,  and  partly  be- 
cause I  wish  so  to  hold  it  up,  that  all  men  may  look  at  this  hideous 

*  B.  C,  62,  12.  t  See  Mormonism  in  all  Ages,  pp.  115,  116. 


172  HISTORY   OF   THE    SAINTS. 

and  blasphemous  abortion  of  all  Scripture,  all  reason,  all  decency, 
and  all  sense. 

"  Christ  prayed,  say  they,  that  all  the  saints  might  be  one  with  him 
and  the  Father.  He  has  declared,  also,  that  they  are  joint  heirs  with 
him,  and  shall  sit  down  with  him  on  his  throne,  as  he  has  overcome 
and  sat  down  with  the  Father  on  his  throne ;  that  to  those  that  be- 
lieve, all  things  are  possible,  «&:c.  Now,  what  logical,  literal,  and 
inspired  inference,  are  we  to  make  from  this  ?  Why,  truly,  nothing 
else  than  that  the  saints  are  all  to  become  equal  with  God  himself!  ! 
in  knowledge,  and  power,  and  glory,  equal  to  the  Father  !  !  But 
this  is  not  all ;  Christ  assured  his  disciples,  that  they  should  do  even 
greater  things  than  these.  Therefore,  say  they,  we  shall  create, 
uphold,  redeem,  save,  and  reign  forever,  over  still  greater  worlds 
than  this  which  Christ  governs  !  !  * 

"  This  is  almost  as  literal  as  tlie  bough  and  the  wall,  the  two 
sticks,  and  the  flying  angel.  What  part  the  '  liars,  knaves,  swin- 
dlers, debauchees,  and  asses,'  (who  bore  witness  to,  and  constitute  the 
foundation  of  the  Book  of  Mormon,  and  on  whose  shoulders  the 
whole  superstructure  rests,)  are  to  have  in  these  displays  of  Mormon 
glory,  we  are  not  definitely  told.  But  since,  according  to  Mormon 
doctrine,  they  have  been  the  principal  means  of  turning  many  to 
righteousness,  doubtless  they  will  shine  as  stars  somewhere  in  this 
new  firmament  of  gods,  higher  than  the  Highest. 

"  Surely,  wlien  this  notable  day  shall  come,  all  things  will  be 
created  new,  with  a  vengeance  !  !  We  see  here  what  it  is  that  in- 
spires the  ardor  and  inflates  the  zeal  of  the  idiot  multitude  of  that 
professed  Church.  They  are  to  possess  the  fulness  and  wealth  of  the 
earth  here,  and  reign  with  Christ  in  Mount  ZiOn.  Missouri,  a  thou- 
sand years,  and  hereafter  they  are  to  become,  not  demigods,  but 
literal  deities,  one  and  all  of  them.  Why ,  then,  talk  about  sacrifices  ? 
They  can  afford  to  empty  tlieir  pockets  into  the  coffers  of  Smith  and 
Company,  and  to  traverse  the  world,  barefoot,  in  quest  of  newZions 
and  new  proselytes,  with  such  a  splendid  reversion  in  prospect. 

"  But  every  Mormon  is  not  only  to  be  a  God  hereafter ;  he  has,  in 
his  own  belief,  been  a  demigod  from  all  eternity,  or  at  least  an  angel 
heretofore. 

"  Their  sublime  faith  teaches  them  that  their  action  and  destiny 
here  are  the  result,  and  can  be  explained  only  upon  the  admission, 
of  tlieir  existence  and  action  before  they  inhabited  their  present 
bodies.  This  notion,  however,  docs  not  dist-inctly  appear  in  their 
published  revelations.  It  was  at  one  time  promulgated,  but  from  its 
unpopularity,  their  leaders  suppressed  the  full  development  of  their 
peculiar  scheme  of  pretixistence  until  faith  on  the  earth  should 
increase.! 

"  These  general  theories  ot  humanity  enable  them,  as  they  think, 
to  give  a  full  and  literal  interpretation  to  the  language  of  Scripture, 
which,  without  these  enlarged  views,  as  they  call  them,  of  the  origin 
and  destiny  of  man,  are  utterly  inexplicable.     Reader,  remember  that 

*  See  Pratt's  Truth  Vindicated,  p.  27. 
t  B.  C,  211,  115. 


OnOANIZATION    AND   DOCTRINE.  173 

when  you  meet  a  full-blooded  Mormon,  you  meet  an  angel  that  was, 
a  Mormon  that  is,  and  a  God  that  is  to  be.  As  in  the  case  of  the 
man  who  fell  down  stairs,  and  ran  up  again,  you  will  find  the  lowest 
point  in  the  climax  in  the  middle  of  his  career. 

"  Probably,  however,  not  one  Mormon  in  fiftj^  knows  what  is  really 
taught  in  their  own  sacred  books.  In  preaching  and  writing  creeds 
in  new  places,  they  do  not  generally  even  allude  to  the  peculiarities 
of  Mormonism  as  such.  They  take  their  texts,  and  preach  a  some- 
what peculiar  form  of  Christianity,  which,  in  trutj},  is  as  much  like 
the  Mormonism  at  Nauvoo,  as  it  is  like  paganism,  and  no  more  so. 
This,  at  first,  they  call  Mormonism.  But  the  doctrines  of  their 
sacred  books  and  teachers  are  quite  another  thing.  Every  believer, 
either  in  Smith  or  the  Book  of  Mormon,  must  believe  that  that  book 
and  the  Book  of  Covenants,  or  revelations  to  Smith,  are  on  a  level 
witli  the  Bible,  and  that  all  who  thus  receive  them  will  be  saved,  and 
that  all  others  will  be  damned." 

"  2.  They  believe  the  Bible  only  as  Smith  interprets  and  e.xplains, 
or  new  translates  and  supplies  the  lost  parts. t 

"  3.  They  believe  in  four  different  future  states ;  the  celestial,  te- 
lestial,  terrestrial,  and  the  lake  of  fire. t 

"If  the  reader  has  doubts  on  any  of  these  points,  he  is  requested 
to  compare  the  pages  and  passages  cited  in  proof  with  care. 

"4.  Their  literal  interpretation  of  Scripture  not  only  involves 
giving  to  the  Deity  a  human  form,  and  implements  of  human  enter- 
prise, but  also  the  literal  future  levelling  of  mountains,  annihilating 
seas,  and  bringing  the  whole  earth  into  one  vast  plain,  without 
weeds,  thorns,  briers,  or  any  useless  or  hurtful  thing — all  as  neat 
and  as  smooth  as  the  head  of  a  pair  of  brass  andirons ;  and  it  is  to  be 
smelted  and  polished  into  shape  much  in  the  same  way. 

"  5.  The  Book  of  Covenants  and  Revelations,  as  it  is  called, 
which  is  the  real  basis  of  the  practical  faith  of  the  Mormons,  con- 
tains only  a  small  part  of  the  revelations  that  have  actually  been 
given  to  Smith,  as  he  pretends.  There  is  still  a  large  folio  of  un- 
published revelations  of  many  hundreds,  which  it  would  be  indis- 
creet to  expose  to  the  rude  gaze  of  unbelievers,  but  which  a  Mormon 
is  really  bound  to  believe  and  obey  wherever  he  meets  them,  or  else 
believe  that  Smith,  to  whom  they  are  given,  is  an  impostor :  for  he 
has  declared  them  all  to  be  from  God,  and  printed  only  so  many  of 
them  as  he  deemed  prudent.  Some  of  those  not  published  occa- 
sionally meet  us,  through  either  the  indiscretion  of  the  brethren  or 
the  kindness  of  seceders. 

"The  revelations  in  the  Book  of  Covenants  cannot  be  understood 
without  carefully  comparing  them  with  the  history  and  position  of 
the  Mormon  Church  at  the  time  they  were  given.  The  transfers 
of  town-lots,  tanyards,  &c.  &c.,  to  Smith  and  Company,  by  ex- 
press revelation,  are  also  artfully  concealed  by  the  use  of  antiquated, 
fictitious  names,  both  for  the  persons  and  the  property.     It  should 

*  In  proof  of  tliis,  sec  B.  C,  pp.  77,  74,  180,  1.59,  78,  75,  93,  95,  104,  113, 
23,  250,  174,  175,  17G,  189,  in  order. 

t  B.  C,  7,  16,  111  ;  B.  M.,  30,  31,  first  edition  :  B.  C,  7G,  117,  166. 
X  B.C.,  225. 

15* 


174  HISTORY   OF   THE    SAINTS. 

also  be  remembered  that  revelations,  said  to  be  given  to  others,  are 
always  given  through  Smith,  who  is  sole  translator,  and  who,  ac- 
cording to  one  revelation,  aspires  to  no  other  gift,*  but,  according 
to  another,  claims  all  gifts  and  all  authority. 

'*  In  1833,  an  edition  of  these  revelations  was  published,  in  the 
order  of  their  dates,  and  called  the  '  Book  of  Commandments,'  with 
explanatory  captions  at  the  head  of  each  revelation.  That  edition 
has  been  wisely  suppressed.  It  was  quite  too  luminous  for  Mor- 
monism.  In  1635,  the  present  book  came  forth,  with  the  type,&c., 
corrected.  The  captions  are  left  out,  and  the  revelations  are  scat- 
tered here  and  there,  without  any  order  of  time  or  date.  It  now 
takes  a  Mormon  to  hunt  tiiem  out,  and  compare  them  with  facts  in 
tlieir  history.  Nor  is  this  all;  whole  clauses,  sections,  and,  in  some 
cases,  almost  entire  pages,  are  either  added  or  suppressed,  as  new 
exigencies  require,  in  these  said  divine  revelations.  Let  not  the 
'  pious  Saint '  complain  of  this.  It  is  the  duty  of  his  Prophet  to  see 
that  the  revelations  are  corrected,  from  time  to  time.  The  disciple 
has  nothing  to  do  but  to  believe. 

"  When  old  Mr.  Smith,  the  father  of  Joe,  was  alive,  he,  among  the 
rest,  needed  something  to  do.  He  was  consequently  dubbed  Patri- 
arch, and  it  was  his  duty  to  pronounce  a  patriarchal  blessing,  in  the 
name  of  Jesus  Christ,  on  the  head  of  all  the  fatherless  children  in 
tlie  Mormon  Church.  He  had  a  wonderful  gift  o? prophecy,  which, 
like  a  cider-barrel  tapped  at  both  ends,  spun  out  both  towards  the 
past  and  the  future.  He  predicted  to  these  sons  of  the  Church  both 
their  pedigree  and  their  destiny  ;  told  them  what  particular  tribe 
of  Israel  they  were  from,  and  what  their  future  career  would  be,  in 
this  world  and  the  next." 


REMARKABLE   EVENTS. 

"  The  reader  will  already  have  observed,  that  a  great  variety  of 
contradictory  stories  were  related^ by  the  Smith  family,  before  they 
had  any  fixed  plan  of  operation,  respecting  the  finding  of  tlie  plates, 
from  which  their  book  was  translated.  One  is,  that  after  the  plates 
were  taken  from  their  hiding-place  by  Joe,  he  again  laid  them  down, 
looked  into  tlie  hole,  where  he  saw  a  toad^  which  immediately  trans- 
formed itself  into  a  spirit,  and  gave  him  a  tremendous  blow. 
Another  is,  that,  after  he  had  got  the  plates,  a  spirit  assaulted  him 
with  the  intention  of  getting  them  from  his  possession,  and  actually 
jerked  them  out  of  his  hands;  Joe,  nothing  daunted,  in  return  seized 
them  again,  and  started  to  run,  when  his  Satanic  Majesty  (or  the 
spirit)  applied  his  foot  to  the  Prophet's  seat  of  honor,  which  raised 
him  three  or  four  feet  from  the  ground.  That  the  Prophet  has 
related  a  story  of  this  kind,  to  some  of  his  '  weak  Saints,'  we  have 
no  manner  of  doubt. 

•  B.  C,  126. 


REMARKABLE    EVENTS.  175 

*'  Here,  then,  is  the  finding  of  the  plates,  containing  a  new  reve- 
lation from  Heaven ;  and  the  modus  operandi  may  seem  to  the 
Mormon  truly  wonderful,  and  in  character  with  that  Being  who 
upholds  and  sustains  tlie  Universe ;  but  to  the  rational  mind  it  can 
excite  no  other  emotion  than  contempt  for  his  species. 

'•  Mr.  Copley  testified  that,  after  the  Mormon  brethren  arrived 
here  from  the  Susquehannah,  one  of  them,  by  the  name  of  Joseph 
Knight,  related  to  him  a  story,  as  having  been  related  to  him  by 
Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  which  e.xciting  some  curiosity  in  his  mind,  he 
determined  to  ask  Joseph  more  particularly  about  it,  on  the  first 
opportunity.  Not  long  after,  it  was  confirmed  to  him  by  Joseph 
himself,  who  again  related  it  in  the  following  manner:  'After  he 
had  finished  translating  the  Book  of  Mormon,  he  again  buried  up 
the  plates  in  the  side  of  a  mountain,  by  command  of  the  Lord.  Some 
time  after  this,  he  was  going  througli  a  piece  of  woods,  on  a  by-path, 
when  he  discovered  an  old  man  dressed  in  ordinary  gray  apparel, 
sitting  upon  a  log,  having  in  jiis  hand,  or  near  by,  a  small  box.  On 
approaching  him,  he  asked  him  wliat  he  had  in  his  box.  To  which 
the  old  man  replied,  that  he  had  a  Monkey,  and  for  five  coppers  he 
might  see  it.  Joseph  answered,  that  he  would  not  give  a  cent  to 
see  a  monkey,  for  he  had  seen  a  hundred  of  them.  He  tlien  asked 
the  old  man  where  he  was  going,  who  said  he  was  going  to  Chiirzee. 
Joseph  then  passed  on,  and,  not  recollecting  any  such  place  in  that 
part  of  the  country,  began  to  ponder  over  the  strange  interview,  and 
finally  asked  the  Lord  the  meaning  of  it.  The  Lord  told  him  that 
tlie  man  he  saw  was  Moro.si,  with  the  plates,  and  if  he  had  given 
him  the  five  coppers,  he  might  have  got  his  plates  again. "^ 

"  Here  we  have  a  story  related  by  our  modern  Prophet,  to  his 
followers,  for  no  other  purpose,  as  we  conceive,  but  to  make  his 
pretensions  more  '  marvellous  in  their  eyes.'  A  celebrated  Mormon 
prophet,  of  ancient  times,  and  one  of  modern  date,  have  an  inter- 
view in  the  woods,  and  hold  a  conversation  about  a  Monkey  ;  one 
prophet  of  the  Lord  relating  a  falsehood  to  another  ! !  I  " 

Hoice's  excellent  and  able  book,  pp.  275 — 277. 

Shortly  after  I  located  in  Nauvoo,  Joe  proposed  to  me 
to  go  to  New  York,  and  get  some  plates  engraved,  and 
brine  them  to  him,  so  that  he  could  exhibit  them  as  the 
genuine  plates  of  the  Book  of  Mormon,  which  he  pretended 
had  been  taken  from  him,  and  "  hid  up  "  by  an  angel,  and 
which  he  would  profess  to  have  recovered.  He  calculated 
upon  making  considerable  money  by  this  trick,  as  there 
would  of  course  be  a  great  anxiety  to  see  the  plates,  which 
he  intended  to  exhibit  at  twenty-five  cents  a  sight.  I  men- 
tioned this  proposition  to  Mrs.  Sarah  M.  Pratt,  on  tlie  day 
the  Prophet  made  it,  and  requested  her  to  keep  it  in 
memory,  as  it  might  be  of  much  importance. 

As  an  illustration  of  the  hypocrisy  of  Joe  Smith,  I  will 


176  HISTORY    OP    THE    SAINTS. 

mention  a  short  conversation  that  passed  between  him  and 
myself,  as  we  were  one  day  riding  together  up  the  banks 
of  the  Mississippi.  After  a  short  interval  of  silence,  Smith 
suddenly  said  to  me,  in  a  peculiarly  inquiring  manner, — 

"  General,  Harris  (meaning  George  W.  Harris,  Esq.,  the 
present  husband  of  the  widow  of  the  late  William  Morgan, 
a  very  pretty  and  intelligent  woman,  who  has  a  very  beau- 
tiful daughter  married  to  Colonel  David  B.  Smith)  says  that 
you  have  no  faith,  and  that  you  do  not  believe  we  shall 
ever  obtain  our  inheritances  in  Jackson  county,  Missouri." 
Though  somewhat  perplexed  by  the  Prophet's  remark,  and 
still  more  by  his  manner,  I  coldly  replied,  "  What  does 
Harris  know  about  my  belief,  or  the  real  state  of  my  mind? 
I  like  to  tease  him  now  and  then  about  it,  as  he  is  so  firm 
in  the  faith,  and  takes  it  all  in  such  good  part."  "  Well," 
said  Joe,  laughing  heartily,  "  I  guess  you  have  got  about 
as  much  faith  as  I  have.  Ha!  ha!  ha!"  "  I  should  judge 
about  as  much,"  was  my  reply. 

My  friend,  General  George  W.  Robinson,  once  related  to 
me  a  curious  circumstance,  which  occurred  in  Missouri, 
when  he  was  clerk  of  the  Church.  One  day,  Joe,  the 
Prophet,  was  gravely  dictating  to  him  a  revelation  which  he 
had  just  received  from  the  Lord.  Robinson,  according  to 
custom,  wrote  down  the  very  words  the  Lord  spoke  to  Joe, 
and  in  the  exact  order  in  which  the  latter  heard  them.  He 
had  written  for  some  considerable  time,  when  Smith's  in- 
spiration began  to  flag,  and,  to  gain  breath,  he  requested 
Robinson  to  read  over  what  he  had  written.  He  did  so 
until  he  came  to  a  particular  passage,  when  Smith  inter- 
rupted him,  and  desired  to  have  that  read  again.  Robinson 
complied,  and  Smith,  shaking  his  head,  knitting  his  brows, 
and  looking  very  much  perplexed,  said,  "  That  will  never 
do.     You  must  alter  that,  George." 

Robinson,  though  not  a  little  surprised  at  the  ^^  Lord's 
blunder,''  did  as  he  was  directed,  and  changed  the  offen- 
sive passage  into  one  more  fit  for  the  inspection  of  the 
Gentiles. 

One  of  the  most  remarkable  of  the  Mormon  miracles  is 
related  by  Rev.  Mr.  Tucker  to  have  occurred  in  the  fol- 
lowin^r  manner  : — 

Towards  the  close  of  a  fine  summer's  day,  a  farmer,  in 


REMARKABLE    EVENTS.  177 

one  of  the  States,  found  a  respectable-looking  man  at  his 
gate,  who  requested  permission  to  pass  the  night  under  his 
roof.  The  hospitable  farmer  readily  complied  :  the  stran- 
ger was  invited  into  the  house,  and  a  warm  and  substan- 
tial supper  set  before  him. 

After  he  had  eaten,  the  farmer,  who  appeared  to  be  a 
jovial,  warm-hearted,  humorous,  and  withal  shrewd  old 
man,  passed  several  hours  in  pleasant  conversation  with 
his  guest,  who  seemed  to  be  very  ill  at  ease,  both  in  body 
and  mind,  yet,  as  if  desirous  of  pleasing  his  entertainer, 
replied  courteously  and  agreeably  to  whatever  was  said  to 
him.  Finally,  he  pleaded  fatigue  and  illness  as  an  excuse 
for  retiring  to  rest,  and  was  conducted  by  the  farmer  to  an 
upper  chamber,  where  he  went  to  bed. 

About  the  middle  of  the  night,  the  farmer  and  his  family 
were  awakened  by  the  most  dreadful  groans,  which  they 
soon  ascertained  proceeded  from  the  chamber  of  the  trav- 
eller. On  going  to  investigate  the  matter,  they  found  that 
the  stranger  was  dreadfully  ill,  suffering  the  most  acute 
pains  and  uttering  the  most  doleful  cries,  apparently  with- 
out any  consciousness  of  what  was  passing  around  him. 
Every  thing  that  kindness  and  experience  could  suggest, 
was  done  to  relieve  the  sick  man;  but  all  efforts  were  in 
vain,  and  to  the  consternation  of  the  farmer  and  his  family, 
their  guest  expired  in  the  course  of  a  few  hours. 

In  the  midst  of  their  trouble  and  anxiety,  at  an  early 
hour  in  the  morning,  two  travellers  came  to  the  gate,  and 
requested  entertainment.  The  farmer  told  them  that  he 
would  willingly  offer  them  hospitality,  but  that  just  now  his 
household  was  in  the  greatest  confusion  on  account  of  the 
death  of  the  stranger,  the  particulars  of  which  he  pro- 
ceeded to  relate  to  them.  They  appeared  to  be  much 
surprised  and  grieved  at  the  poor  man's  calamity,  and 
politely  requested  permission  to  see  the  corpse.  This  of 
course  the  farmer  readily  granted,  and  conducted  them  to 
the  chamber  in  which  lay  the  dead  body.  They  looked 
at  it  for  a  few  minutes  in  silence,  and  then  the  oldest 
of  the  pair  gravely  told  the  farmer,  that  they  were 
Elders  of  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter  Day 
Saints,  and  were  empowered  by  God  to  perform  miracles, 
even  to  the  extent  of  raising  the  dead ;  and  that  they  felt 


173  HISTORY   OF    THE    SAINTS. 

quite  assured  they  could  bring  to  life  the  dead  man  before 
them  ! 

The  farmer  was  of  course  pretty  considerably  astonished 
by  the  quality  and  powers  of  the  persons  who  addressed 
him,  and  rather  incredulously  asked  if  they  were  quite 
sure  that  they  could  perform  all  they  professed  to. 

"  O  certainly  !  Not  a  doubt  of  it.  The  Lord  has  com- 
missioned us  expressly  to  work  miracles,  in  order  to  prove 
the  truth  of  the  Prophet  Joseph  Smith,  and  the  inspiration 
of  the  books  and  doctrines  revealed  to  him.  Send  for  all 
your  neighbors,  that,  in  the  presence  of  a  multitude,  we 
may  bring  the  dead  man  to  life,  and  that  the  Lord  and  his 
Church  may  be  glorified  to  all  men." 

The  farmer,  after  a  little  consideration,  agreed  to  let 
the  miracle-workers  proceed,  and,  as  they  desired,  sent  his 
children  to  his  neighbors,  who,  attracted  by  the  expec- 
tation of  a  miracle,  flocked  to  the  house  in  considerable 
numbers. 

The  Mormon  Elders  commenced  their  task  by  kneelinor 
and  praying  before  the  body  with  uplifted  hands  and  eyes, 
and  with  most  stentorian  lungs.  Before  they  had  pro- 
ceeded far  with  their  prayer,  a  sudden  idea  struck  the 
farmer,  who  quietly  quitted  the  house  for  a  few  minutes, 
and  then  returned,  and  waited  patiently  by  the  bedside 
until  the  prayer  was  finished,  and  the  Elders  ready  to  per- 
form their  miracle.  Before  they  began,  he  respectfully 
said  to  them,  that,  with  their  permission,  he  wished  to  ask 
them  a  few  questions  upon  the  subject  of  this  miracle. 
They  replied  that  they  had  no  objection.  The  farmer 
then  asked,  "  You  are  quite  certain  that  you  can  bring  this 
man  to  life  again?"  "  We  are."  "How  do  you  know 
that  you  can?"  "We  have  just  received  a  revelation 
from  the  Lord,  informing  us  that  we  can."  "  Are  you 
quite  sure  that  the  revelation  was  from  the  Lord?" 
"Yes;  we  cannot  be  mistaken  about  it."  "Does  your 
power  to  raise  this  man  to  life  again  depend  upon  the  par- 
ticular nature  of  his  disease?  or  could  you  now  bring  any 
dead  man  to  life  ?  "  "  It  makes  no  difference  to  us  :  we 
could  bring  any  corpse  to  life."  "  Well,  if  this  man  had 
been  killed,  and  one  of  his  arms  cut  off,  could  you  bring 
him  to  life,  and  also  restore  to  him   his  arm  ? "     "  Cer- 


REMARKABLE    EVENTS.  179 

tainly,  —  there  is  no  limit  to  the  power  given  us  by  the 
Lord.  It  would  make  no  difference,  even  if  both  his  arms 
and  his  legs  were  cut  off."  "  Could  you  restore  him  if 
his  head  had  been  cut  off?"  "Certainly  we  could." 
"  Well,"  saii  the  farmer,  with  a  quiet  smile  upon  his  fea- 
tures, "  I  do  not  doubt  the  truth  of  what  such  holy  men 
assert,  but  I  am  desirous  that  my  neighbors  here  should 
be  fully  converted  by  having  the  miracle  performed  in  the 
completest  manner  possible.  So,  by  your  leave,  if  it  makes 
no  difference  whatever,  I  will  proceed  to  cut  off  the  head 
of  this  corpse."  Accordingly  he  produced  a  huge  and 
well-sharpened  broad  axe  from  beneath  his  coat,  which  he 
swung  above  his  head,  and  was  apparently  about  to  bring 
it  down  upon  the  neck  of  the  corpse,  when,  lo  and  be- 
hold !  to  the  amazement  of  all  present,  the  dead  man 
started  up  in  great  agitation,  and  swore  he  would  not  have 
his  head  cut  off  for  any  consideration  whatever  ! 

The  company  immediately  seized  the  Mormons,  and 
soon  made  them  confess  that  the  pretended  dead  man 
was  also  a  Mormon  Elder,  and  that  they  had  sent  him  to 
the  farmer's  house,  with  directions  to  die  there  at  a  par- 
ticular hour,  when  they  would  drop  in,  as  if  by  accident, 
and  perform  a  miracle  that  would  astonish  every  body. 
The  farmer,  after  giving  the  impostors  a  severe  chas- 
tisement, let  them  depart  to  practise  their  humbuggery  in 
some  other  quarter. 

I  give  the  following  from  the  Times  and  Seasons, 
Vol.  III.,  No.  8,  page  701,  verbatim,  ft  Utrratim.,  ft  pimc- 
tatim,  as  a  sample  of  the  Prophet's  editorial  taste  in  doing 
up  hymeneal  notices,  and  as  an  evidence  of  his  purity  and 
chastity  of  thought  on  subjects  of  that  kind.  Any  Gentile 
editor  would  be  hooted  out  of  society  for  penning  and 
publishing  such  contemptible  stuff. 

"  Married — In  this  city  on  the  6th  inst.  by  the  Rev.  Erastus  H. 
Derby,  Mr.  Gilbert  H.  Rolfe,  to  Miss  Ehza  Jane  Bates,  all  of  this 
city. 

"  On  receipt  of  the  above  notice,  we  were  favored  with  a  rich  and 
delightful  loaf  of  cake — by  no  means  beloio  the  medium  size;  which 
makes  us  anxious  that  all  their  acts  through  life  may  be  juslijird; 
and  when  life  wanes  and  they  find  a  peaceful  abode  in  the  '  narrow 
house,'  may  the  many  outs  and  ins  they  have  made,  leave  to  the 
world  an  abundant  posterity  to  celebrate  tlieir  glorious  example.' 


180  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 


PHRENOLOGICAL    CHARTS. 

I  here  insert  two  phrenological  charts,  about  which 
much  has  been  said  and  written,  simply  as  a  matter  of 
curiosity.  That  of  the  Prophet  was  taken  in  Nauvoo,  Il- 
linois, by  Doctor  Crane,  in  June  last;  mine  w^as  taken  in 
Fairfield,  Illinois,  by  Doctor  Parnell,  between  two  and 
three  years  since. 

"  SMITH'S    CHART,    BY  CRANE. 

In  this  chart  the  figures  range  from  1  to  12;  1  is  the 
minimum,  7  the  medium,  and  12  the  maximum. 

From  the  JVauvoo  JVasp,  of  July  Q,  1842. 
"  Mr.  Editor : 

"  Sir,  —  I  take  the  liberty  to  inform  you  tliat  a  large 
number  of  persons  in  different  places  have  manifested  a  desire  to 
know  the  phrenological  development  of  Joseph  Smitli's  head.  I 
have  examined  the  Prophet's  head,  and  he  is  perfectly  wiUing  to 
have  the  chart  published.  You  will  please  publish  in  your  paper 
such  portions  of  it  as  I  have  marked,  showing  the  development  of 
his  much-talked-of  brain,  and  let  the  public  judge  for  themselves 
whether  phrenology  proves  the  reports  against  him  true  or  false 
Time  will  prove  all  things,  and  a  '  word  to  tiie  wise  is  sufficient.' 

"  Yours,  respectfully, 

"A.  Crane." 


"A    PHRENOLOGICAL     CHART. 

"  By  A.  Crane,  M.  D.,  Professor  of  Phrenology. 

"  PROPENSITIES 

"11;    L.    Mmutlveness.  —  Extreme    susceptibility)    passionately 
fond  of  the  company  of  the  other  sex. 

"  9  ;  L.    Philoprogenitiveness.  —  Strong  parental  affection,  great 
solicitude  for  tlieir  happiness. 

"5;  F.    Jnhuhidecness.  —  Attached  to  place  of  long  residence, 
no  desire  to  change  residence. 

"H;  F.   Adhesiveness. —  Solicitous   for  the  happiness  of  friends, 
and  ardent  attachments  to  the  other  sex. 

"8:  L.    Comhatixcness.  —  Indomitable  perseverance  ;  great  cour- 
age ;  force  ;  ability  to  overpower. 

"6;  M.    Destriictiteness.  —  Ability  to  control  the  passions ;  and  is 
not  disposed  to  extreme  measures. 

"  10 ;  L.    Sccreti.veness.  —  Great  propensity  and  ability  to  conceal 
feelings,  plans,  &c. 

"9;  L.   Acquisitiveness.  —  Strong  love  of  riches;  desire  to  make 
and  save  money. 


PHRENOLOGICAL    CHARTS.  181 

"9;  L.  Mimentivencss.  —  Strong  relish  for  food  ;  keen  and  se- 
vere appetite. 

"4;  M.  or  S.  Vitativeness.  —  InditFerence  to  life;  views  the  ap- 
proach of  death  without  fear. 

"  FEELmcS. 

"7;  F.  Cautiousness.  —  Provision  against  prospective  dano-ers 
and  ills,  without  hesitation  or  irresohition. 

"10;  L.  Approbativeness.' — Ambition  for  distinction;  sense  of 
character;  sensibility  to  reproacli;  fear  of  scandal. 

"10;  L.  Self-esteem.  —  High-mindedness  ;  independence;  self- 
confidence  ;  dignity  ;  aspiration  for  greatness. 

"  7 ;  F.  Concentrativencss.  —  Can  dwell  on  a  subject  without  fa- 
tigue, and  control  the  imagination. 

"  SENTIMENTS. 

"10;  L.  Benevolence.  —  Kindness;  goodness;  tenderness;  sym- 
pathy. 

"  6 ;  F.  Veneration.  —  Religion  without  great  awe  or  enthusiasm  ; 
reasonable  deference  to  superiority. 

"10;  L.  Firmness.  —  Stability  and  decision  of  character  and 
purpose. 

"8;  L.  Conscientiousness. — High  regard  for  duty,  integrity, 
moral  principle,  justice,  obligation,  truth,  &c 

'•  10 ;  L.  Hope.  —  Cheerfulness ;  sanguine  expectation  of  success 
and  enjoyment. 

"10;  L.  Marvellousness.  —  Wonder;  credulity;  belief  in  the  su- 
pernatural. 

"5;  M.  Imitation. — Inferior  imitative  powers;  failure  to  copy, 
describe,  relate  stories,  &c. 

"8;  L.  or  F.  Prepossession.  —  Attached  to  certain  notions;  not 
disposed  to  change  them,  &c. 

"9;  L.  Ideality.  —  Lively  imagination;  fancy;  taste;  love  of 
poetry,  elegance,  eloquence,  excellence,  &c. 

"  PERCEPTIVES. 

"  8  ;  F.  or  M.  Mmonition.  —  Desirous  to  know  what  others  are 
doing;  ready  to  counsel  and  give  hints  of  a  fault  or  duty,  «fcc. 

"  7  ;  F.  Constructiceness.  —  Respectable  ingenuity,  without  un- 
common skill,  tact,  or  facility  in  making,  &c. 

"5;  F.  or  M.  Tune.  —  Love  of  music,  without  quickness  to  catch 
or  learn  tunes  by  the  ear. 

"11;  V.  L.  or  L.  Time.  —  Distinct  impressions  as  to  the  time 
when,  how  long,  &c. 

"11;  V.  L  or  L.  Locality. —  Great  memory  of  places  and  po- 
sition. 

"  11 ;  V.  L.  Eventuality.  —  Extraordinary  recollection  of  minute 
circumstances. 

"  10  ;  L.  Individuality.-^  Great  desire  to  see  ;  power  of  observa- 
tion. 

"10;  F.  Form.  —  Cognizance,  and  distinct  recollection  of  shapes, 
countenances,  «&c. 

16 


182  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

"11;  V.  L.,  L.  or  F.  Size.  —  Ability  to  judge  of  proportionate 
size,  «S:c. 

"■[)',  V.  L.,  L.  or  F.  Wciglit. — Knowledge  of  gravitation,  momen- 
tum, &c. 

"  i>;  F.  or  i\I.  Color.  —  Moderate  skill  in  judging  of  colors,  com- 
paring and  arranging  them. 

'•(J;  F.  Language.  —  Freedom  of  expression,  without  fluency  or 
verbosity ;  no  great  loquacity. 

"9;  L.  Order.  —  Love  of  arrangement;  every  thing  in  its  par- 
ticular place. 

"7;  jYumber.  —  Respectable  aptness  in  arithmetical  calculations, 
without  extraordinary  talent. 

"REFLECTIVES. 

"10;  L.  Mi.rthf Illness .  —  Wit;  fun;  mirth;  perception  and  love 
of  the  ludicrous. 

"  9 ;  L.  Causality.  —  Ability  to  tiiink  and  reason  clearly,  and  per- 
ceive the  relations  of  cause  and  effect. 

"11;  V.  L.  Comparison.  —  Extraordinary  critical  acumen  ;  great 
power  of  analysis. 

"  THERE    ARE    FOUR    TEMPERAMEXTS. 

'•The  LvjiPHATic,  or  Plilegmatic,  m  which  ihti  secreting  glands 
are  the  most  active  portion  of  the  system,  produces  both  corporeal 
and  mental  languor,  dulness,  and  inactivity. 

"  The  Sanguine,  in  which  the  arterial  portion  of  the  sj'stem  is 
most  active,  gives  strong  feelings  and  passions,  and  more  ardor, 
zeal,  and  activity,  than  of  strength  or  power. 

"The  Bilious,  in  whicli  the  muscular  portion  predominates  in 
activity,  produces  strength,  power,  and  endurance  of  body,  with 
great  force  and  energy  of  mind  and  character. 

'•  The  Nervous,  in  which  the  bruin  and  nervous  system  are  most 
active,  gives  the  highest  degree  of  activity,  with  clearness  of  percep- 
tion and  of  tliought,  but  less  endurance.  Sharp  and  prominent 
organs  denote  activity;  smooth  and  broad  ones,  intensity  and 
streno-th. 


"  EXPL.\NATUON  OF  THE  CHART. 
"  The  figures  in  the  margin  opposite  the  organs,  and  ranging  in  a 
scale  from  1  to  12,  indicate  the  various  degrees  in  which  tlie 
respective  organs  are  developed  in  the  head  of  the  individual  ex- 
amined :  thns,  1,  2,  indicate  that  the  organ  is  verv  small,  or  almost 
wholly  v/anting;  ',i,  4,  means  small,  or  feeble,  and  inactive;  5,  6, 
MODERATE,  or  active  onl}' in  a  subordinate  degree;  7,  8,  full  or 
fair,  and  a  little  above  par  ;  9,  10,  large,  or  quite  energetic,  and  hav- 
ing a  marked  influence  upon  the  cliaracter;  11,  12,  verv  large,  or 
giving  a  controlling  influence,  and  extreme  liability  to  perversion. 

The    SIZE     OF    THE     BRAIN,    COMBIN ArtONS    OF    THE    FACULTIES,    and 

TEMPERAMENT,  of  the    individual   may  be    indicated   in    the   same 
ni;niner  as  the  degrees  of  the  faculties  or  orijans. 

The  initials  V.  L.  denote  very  large ;  L.  large  ;  F.  full ;  M.  mod- 
erate ;  S.  small ;  V.  S.  very  small. 


PHRENOLOGICAL    CHARTS.  183 

COMBINATION  OF  THE  FACULTIES. 

"  The  fore  part  of  the  head  is  called  the  frontal  portion ;  and  the 
back,  the  occipital ;  the  base,  or  lower  part,  is  denominated  tlie 
bmsHar  region ;  and  the  upper  portion,  the  coronal. 

"  Phrenology  has  ascertained  what  portion  of"  the  brain  the  mind 
employs  in  the  exercise  of  each  mental  function  ;  and  hence,  by  deter- 
mining how  much  larger  one  part  of  tJie  brain  is  than  another,  it 
can  tell  liow  much  an  individual  exercises  certain  classes  of  mental 
functions  more  than  he  does  others.  The  combinations  of  the 
organs  have,  also,  great  influence  upon  tlie  mental  manifestations. 
The  rule  is,  that  the  larger  organs  control  the  smaller. 

"  When  the  occipital  portion  is  larger  than  the  frontal,  there  will 
be  more  of  feeling  than  reason  ;  of  passion  than  intellect ;  of  brutality 
than  humanity;  of  propelling  than  directing  power;  of  action  than 
judgment.  But  when  the  frontal  region  is  much  larger  than  the 
occipital,  as  in  the  heads  of  Melancthon,  Franklin,  Washington, 
and  Clinton,  the  individual  will  combine  pure  morality  with  great 
depth  and  power  of  intellect;  a  strong  mind  with  virtuous  feelings; 
and  sound  practical  sense,  with  nobleness  of  conduct.  , 

"  One  having  large  or  very  large  intellectual  organs,  combined 
with  moderate  or  small  organs  of  the  propensities,  will  possess  great 
mental  power  with  a  want  of  impetus  ;  high  intellectual  and  moral 
qualities,  with  inefHciehcy;  but  with  the  propensities  well  devel- 
oped, and  the  intellectual  faculties  very  large,  will  combine  great 
strength  of  mind  with  great  energy  of  character,  and  both  directed 
by  the  human  sentiments,  and  applied  to  moral  and  intellectual  ob- 
jects :  Washington,  Franklin,  Clinton,  and  Lafayette. 

"  One  having  very  large  perceptive  faculties,  combined  with  only 
full  reasoning  organs,  will  possess  a  practical  matter-of-fact  talent, 
and  an  uncommon  share  of  general  information,  yet  lack  depth  of 
mind  and  strength  of  intellect,  and  a  talent  for  adapting  means  to 
ends. 

"  One  having  the  perceptive  organs  full  or  large,  with  very  large 
reflective  faculties,  will  have  a  universal  talent,  and  ability  both  "to 
plan  and  execute  ;  to  attend  to  general  principles  and  to  details  ;  and, 
with  full  or  large  propensities^  be  capable  of  employing  extraordinary 
talents  to  the  best  advantage,  and  of  rising  to  eminence  :  Franklin, 
Washington,  Clinton,  Bonaparte. 

"One  having  very  large  reasoning  organs,  with  only  moderate  or 
full  perceptive  faculties,  will  possess  great  depth  and  originality  of 
mind,  and  profound  philosophical  acumen  ;  but  will  think  and  reason 
more  than  observe. 

"One  in  whom  the  basilar  region  greatly  predominates  over  the 
coronal,  will  possess  great  force  of  character,  and  a  ready  talent  for 
business,  but  strong  passions  applied  to  selfish  purposes,  with  little 
morality  and  elevation  of  character  and  ft-eling. 

"  An  evenness  of  the  head  indicates  uniformity  of  character  ;  and 
unevenness  eccentricities  and  strong  traits." 


1S4  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 


BENNETT'S   CHART,  BY  PARNELL. 

In  this  chart  the  figures  range  from  1  to  22 ;   1  is  the 
minimum,  14  the  medium,  and  22  the  maximum! 

"  Phremlogkal  Developments  of  General  John  C.  Bennett. 

"  Remarks. —  The  brain  may  be  more  or  less  active,  from  temper- 
ament and  texture,  —  the  former  to  be  determined  by  the  compara- 
tive size  of  the  head,  thorax,  and  abdomen,  the  latter  by  observ- 
ing tlie  fibre  of  the  skin.  The  size  of  the  head  is  always  compared 
with  the  size  of  the  body  of  the  same  individual,  and  the  size  of  the 
faculties  witli  the  faculties  of  the  same  head.  If  the  size  of  the 
faculties  are  marked  by  figures,  those  used  will  be  from  1  to  22 ;  the 
medium,  14  :  if  by  words,  V.  S.  stands  for  very  small ;  S.  for  small ; 
R.  S.  for  rather  small ;  M.  for  moderate  ;  F.  for  full ;  V.  F.  for  very 
full ;  -L.  for  large  ;  V.  L.  for  very  large. 

"FEELINGS,   OR  AFFECTIVE   FACULTIES 

"  Genus  One  —  Propensities. 

"17.  Vitativeness.  —  Use;  to  preserve  life.  Abuse;  too  great  a 
fear  of  death.     Want;  careless  of  health  and  life. 

"17.  Miinentiveness.  —  Use;  to  prompt  to  take  food.  Abuse; 
drunkenness  and  gluttony.     Want;  careless  of  the  kind  of  food. 

"  18.  Destructiveness.  —  Use ;  to  destroy  animals  for  food.  Abuse ; 
anger,  revenge,  murder.     Want;  inability  to  destroy. 

"  18.  jlmativcness.  —  Use ;  propagation  of  the  species  —  affection 
for  the  opposite  sex.  Abuse  ;  jealousy,  lust,  lasciviousness,  rapes, 
seduction.     Want ;  incapacity  to  love  the  opposite  sex. 

"14.  Philoprogenitiveness.  —  Use ;  protection  of  offspring.  Abuse ; 
too  great  a  fondness  for  children.  Want;  neglect  of  them,  hatred 
of  children. 

"16.  ^rfAcsJ25£wc55.  —  Use ;  attachment,  friendship.  Abuse;  too 
great  a  fondness  for  society.  Want ;  averse  to  friendship  and  social 
society. 

_  "14.  Concentrativeness. — Use;  to  give  continuity  to  feelings  and 
intellect.  Abuse  ;  too  great  a  love  of  home,  place,  country,  and  a 
disposition  to  dwell  too  long  on  one  subject.  Want ;  incapacity 
to  locate  and  be  content,  and  to  keep  the  intellect  on  one  subject. 

"ID.  Covihativmess.  —  Use  ;  courage,  self-defence.  Abuse;  con- 
tention, quarrelling,  war.     Want ;  timidity. 

"14.  Secretiveness. —  Use  ;  prudence,  to  conceal.  Abuse  ;  suspi- 
cion, deceit,  lying.     Want ;  inability  to  conceal. 

"  13.  .Acquisitiveness.  —  Use  ;  to  provide  for  present  and  future 
wants.     Abuse  ;  avarice  and  theft.     Want ;  prodigality,  spendthrift. 

"  13.  Constrvctiveness.  —  Use  ;  to  construct,  build,  and  invent. 
Abuse  ;  picklocks,  too  great  a  desire  to  invent,  and  to  build  without 
judgment.     Want;  want  of  mechanical  genius. 


PHRENOLOGICAL    CHARTS.  185 

"  Genus  Two  —  Sentiments. 

"13.  Cautiousness.  —  Use;  circumspection,  care  —  to  keep  from 
danger.  Abuse  ;  fear,  melancholy,  basiifulness,  hesitation.  Want ; 
reckless,  hasty  in  speech  and  action. 

"  16.  Approhativcness.  —  Use  ;  to  gain  the  good-will  and  esteem  of 
others,  proper  ambition.  Abuse  ;  vanity,  and  too  great  a  love  of 
glory,  fame,  and  applause-  Want ;  regardless  of  the  opinion  of  oth- 
ers, want  of  proper  ambition. 

"14.  Self- Esteem.  —  Use  ;  proper  self-respect.  Abuse  ;  pride,  and 
too  great  a  love  of  power.  Want ;  want  of  confidence,  distrust  of 
one's  abilities. 

"  14.  <J.    A  love  of  the  pathetic,  sublime,  and  awful. 

"  16.  Benevolence.  —  Use ;  mercy,  charity,  and  forgiveness.  Abuse  ; 
relieving  the  lazy,  idle,  and  unworthy.  Want ;  inditierent  to  the 
wants  and  woes  of  others,  unforgiving. 

"16.  J'^eneration.  —  Use  ;  to  revere,  respect,  and  reverence  laws, 
parents,  the  Creator  and  his  laws,  and  what  is  great  and  good. 
Abuse  ;  servility  and  the  worship  of  what  is  evil.  Want ;  disre- 
spect, neglect  of  parents,  disregard  for  the  Creator  and  the  laws  of 
the  land. 

',  "  16.  Firmness.  —  Use  ;  perseverance,  fortitude,  and  steadiness  of 
purpose.  Abuse;  stubbornness,  wilfulness,  and  desperation.  Want; 
fickleness  of  purpose  and  opinion. 

"18.  Conscicntiousticss.—  Vse;  perfect  justice  to  all.  Abuse; 
too  great  a  sensitiveness.     Want ;  disregard  for  the  rights  of  others. 

"10.  Ho-pc.  —  Use;  to  lead  one  to  endeavor  to  obtain  what  the 
other  faculties  properly  desire.  Abuse  ;  castle-building,  too  great 
expectation.     Want ;  doubt  and  despondency. 

"  9.  Mdrvellousness.  —  Use  ;  faith,  confidence,  and  proper  be- 
lief. Abuse;  credulity,  fanaticism,  —  a  belief  in  the  supernatural, 
ghosts,  and  witches.     Want;  unbelief,  want  of  confidence  in  others. 

"11.  Ideality.  —  Use;  desire  of  perfection,  poetry.  Abuse;  fas- 
tidiousness, too  great  a  disposition  to  raise  the  mind  above  reality 
and  sober  reason      Want ;  regardless  of  improvement. 

"16.  Mirthful ness.  —  Use;  cheerfulness,  mirth,  wit,  and  gayety. 
Abuse  ;  sarcasm,  too  great  a  love  of  the  ridiculous,  and  of  ridicule. 
Want ;  inability  to  enjoy  mirth  and  conviviality. 

"12.    Imitation.  —  Use;  natural  language  —  to  imitate  in  nature 
and  the  arts.    Abuse  ;  mimicry,  forgery,  and  counterfeiting.    Want 
inability  to  copy. 

« INTELLECTUAL   FACULTIES. 

"Genus  One  —  Perceptive  Faculties. 

"18.  Individuality. — The  observing  faculty.     Memory  of  things. 

"16.  Form.  —  Memory  of  persons,  drawing. 

"17.  Size.  —  Judge  of  size,  distance,  and  perpendicularity. 

"  17.  Weight.  —  Judge  of  weight  and  gravity. 

"  18.  Coloring.  —  Painting,  flowers,  beauties  of  nature. 

■"  19.  Locality.  —  Love  of  travel,  memory  of  places. 

16* 


186  HISTORY    OF   THE    SAINTS 

"  15.  Order.  —  Love  of  arrangement. 

"  16.  Kamber.  —  Love  of  figures,  memory  of  numbers. 

"  14.  Eventuulitij.  —  Love  of  history,  memory  of  historical  events. 

"  14.  Time.  —  Clironology,  time  in  music. 

"  13.  Tunc.  —  Tones  in  music,  memory  of  sound. 

"  16.  Language.  —  Memory  of  words. 

"  Genus  Two  —  Reflective  Faculties. 

"  16.    Comparison.  —  Judgment,  logical  reason. 
"  13.    Causality.  —  Gives  one  the  power  to  reason  abstractly,  a  love 
of  metaphysics,  and  to  trace  effects  to  their  causes. 

"  12.   Inference.  —  The  power  to  draw  conclusions  from  premises. 

"  Temperament.  —  Sanguine  and  bilious. 

"  The  animal  passions  and  intellectual  powers  prevail  in  this  head 
in  a  great  degree  over  the  superior  sentiments ;  consequently,  he 
has  great  energy  and  indomptable  perseverance,  and  much  more 
force  and  power,  than  goodness  and  fine  feeling ;  he  was  made  for 
war,  rapine,  plunder,  and  destruction;  to  fill  some  high  station, 
where  he  could  have  power,  take  the  command,  and  he  would  gain 
all  his  ends  by  force  and  storm.  He  is  very  tenacious  of  life,  but 
still  a  man  of  great  courage.  He  is  an  epicure,  and  fond  of  good  liv- 
ing ;  and  quite  amorous  ;  strong  in  friendship,  but  still  stronger  in 
his  feelings  of  hatred  and  desire  of  revenge.  He  is  quite  ambitious  ; 
desires  fame,  glory,  and  renown  ;  is  liasty,  rash,  violent  ;  wants 
patience  and  prudence.  He  would  sacrifice  money  both  for  fame 
and  power.  He  is  very  generous,  and  would  relieve  the  distressed. 
He  wants  faith  and  hope,  and  is  not  fond  of  the  marvellous ;  must 
have  facts  before  his  mind  can  be  convinced.  He  is  not  a  wit,  poet, 
or  musician  ;  but  is  very  severe,  satirical,  and  has  some  of  the  poetry 
of  love,  and  is  very  fond  of  amorous  and  martial  music.  He  is  good 
to  imitate  from  observation  and  recollection,  but  not  from  feeling. 
His  pride  would  prevent  him  from  being  guilty  of  small,  mean  acts. 
He  is  governed  very  much  by  his  feelings,  and  is  too  liable  to  jump 
at  conclusions.  He  has  very  strong  powers  of  observation,  and 
memory  of  things,  facts,  faces,  places,  and  dates  ;  good,  of  events, 
language,  and  time  ;  poor,  of  tones.  He  is  very  fond  of  the  physical 
sciences,  geography,  travel  ;  of  order,  discipline,  and  epistolary 
writing.  He  is  a  most  accurate  judge  of  size,  distance,  proportion, 
location,  and  color  ;  should  be  a  first-rate  surgeon,  or  a  fair  linguist; 
reasons  by  comparison. 

"B.    A.    P.\RNELL." 


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DESCRIPTION   OF    NAUVOO.  189 


DESCRIPTION   OF  NAUVOO. 

Nauvoo,  the  Holy  City  of  the  Mormons  and  present  cap- 
ital of  their  empire,  is  situated  in  the  north-western  part  of 
Illinois,  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Mississippi,  in  latitude  N. 
40°  35',  and  longitude  W.  14°  23'.  It  is  bounded  on  the 
north,  south,  and  west,  by  the  river,  which  there  forms  a 
large  curve,  and  is  nearly  two  miles  wide.  Eastward  of  the 
city  is  a  beautiful  undulating  prairie.  It  is  distant  ten 
miles  from  Fort  Madison,  in  Iowa,  is  fifty-five  miles  above 
Ouincy,  Illinois,  and  more  than  two  hundred  above  St. 
Louis. 

Before  the  Mormons  gathered  there,  the  place  was  named 
Commerce,  and  was  but  a  small  and  obscure  village  of  some 
twenty  houses.  So  rapidly,  however,  have  they  accumu- 
lated, that  there  are  now,  within  three  years  of  their  first 
settlement,  upwards  of  seven  thousand  inhabitants  in  the 
city,  and  three  thousand  more,  of  the  Saints,  in  its  immedi 
ate  vicinity. 

The  surface  of  the  ground  upon  which  Nauvoo  is  built, 
is  very  uneven,  though  there  are  no  great  elevations.  A 
few  feet  below  the  soil  is  a  vast  bed  of  limestone,  from 
which  excellent  building  material  can  be  quarried,  to  al- 
most any  extent.  A  number  of  tumuli,  or  ancient  mounds, 
are  found  within  the  limits  of  the  city,  proving  it  to  have 
been  a  place  of  some  importance  with  the  extinct  inhabit- 
ants of  this  continent. 

The  space  comprised  within  the  city  limits  is  about  four 
miles  in  its  greatest  length,  and  three  in  its  greatest  breadth, 
but  is  very  irregular  in  its  outline,  and  does  not  cover  so 
much  ground  as  the  above  measurement  would  seem  to  in- 
dicate. 

The  city  is  regularly  laid  out  —  the  streets  crossing  each 
other  at  right  angles,  and  being  generally  of  considerable 
length,  and  of  convenient  width.  The  majority  of  the 
houses  are  as  yet  merely  whitewashed  log-cabins,  but  lat- 
terly quite  a  number  of  frame  and  brick  houses  have  been 
erected. 

The  chief  edifices  of  Nauvoo  are  the  Temple,  and  a  ho- 


190  PIISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS, 

tel,  called  the  Nauvoo  House,  neither  of  which  is  yet  hii- 
islied.  The  hitter  is  of  brick,  upon  a  stone  foundation,  and 
presents  a  front,  on  two  streets,  of  one  hundred  and  twenty 
feet  each,  by  forty  feet  deep,  and  is  to  be  three  stories  high, 
exclusive  of  the  basement ;  and,  though  intended  chiefly  for 
the  reception  and  entertainment  of  strangers  and  travellers, 
contains,  or,  rather,  when  completed  is  to  contain,  a  splen- 
did suite  of  apartments,  for  the  especial  accommodation  of 
the  Prophet  Joe  Smith,  and  his  heirs  and  descendants  for- 
ever ! 

The  privilege  of  this  accommodation  he  pretends  was 
granted  him  by  the  Lord,  in  a  special  revelation,  on  ac- 
count of  his  services  to  the  Church.  It  is  most  extraordi- 
nary that  Americans,  imbued  with  democratic  sentiments 
and  an  utter  aversion  to  hereditary  privileges  of  any  kind, 
could  for  a  moment  be  blinded  to  the  selfishness  of  the 
scoundrel,  who  thus  coolly  provided  for  himself  and  his 
latest  posterity  a  palace  and  a  maintenance.  We  may, 
however,  safely  predict  that  his  Imperial  Majesty  will  not 
continue  long  in  the  enjoyment  of  his  palace,  and  that,  if 
he  escapes  the  fate  of  Haman,  it  will  only  be  to  wander, 
like  Cain,  a  vagabond  on  the  face  of  the  earth. 

The  Mormon  Temple  is  a  splendid  structure  of  stone, 
quarried  within  the  bounds  of  the  city.  Its  breadth  is 
eighty  feet,  and  its  length  one  hundred  and  twenty,,  besides 
an  outer  court  of  thirty  feet,  making  the  length  of  the  whole 
structure  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet. 

In  the  basement  of  the  Temple  is  the  baptismal  font, 
constructed  in  imitation  of  the  famous  brazen  sea  of  Solo- 
mon. It  is  upborne  by  twelve  oxen,  handsomely  carved, 
and  overlaid  with  gold.  Upon  the  surface  of  it,  in  panels,"" 
are  represented  various  scenes,  handsomely  painted.  This 
font  is  used  for  baptism  of  various  kinds,  viz.,  baptism  for 
admission  into  the  Church  —  baptism  for  the  healing  of 
the  sick  —  baptism  for  the  remission  of  sins — and  lastly, 
which  is  the  most  singular  of  all,  baptism  for  the  dead.  By 
this  latter  rite,  living  persons,  selected  as  the  representa- 
tives of  persons  deceased,  are  baptized  for  them,  and  thus 
the  dead  are  released  from  the  penalty  of  their  sins!  This 
baptism  was  performed,  I  recollect,  for  General  Washing- 
ton, among  many  others. 


DESCRIPTION    OF    NAUVOO.  191 

The  upper  story  of  the  Temple  will,  when  finished,  be 
used  as  a  lodge-room  for  Order  Lodge,  and  other  secret 
societies. 

In  the  body  of  the  Temple,  where  it  is  intended  that  the 
congregation  shall  assemble,  are  two  sets  of  pulpits ;  one 
for  the  Melchisedec  priesthood,  and  the  other  for  the  Aaron- 
ic  and  Levitical  priesthood. 

The  cost  of  this  noble  edifice  has  been  defrayed  by  tith- 
ing the  whole  Mormon  Church.  Those  who  reside  at 
Nauvoo,  and  are  able  to  labor,  have  been  obliged  to  work 
every  tenth  day  in  quarrying  stone,  and  also  upon  the  Tem- 
ple itself;  and  those  who  reside  at  a  distance  have  been 
levied  upon  to  the  amount  of  one  tenth  of  their  property. 

Besides  the  Temple,  there  are  in  Nauvoo  two  extensive 
steam  saw  mills,  a  large  steam  flouring  mill,  a  tool  factory, 
on  a  handsome  scale,  a  foundry,  and  a  company  of  consid- 
erable wealth,  from  Staffordshire,  England,  are  establishing 
the  manufacture  of  English  china-ware. 

It  has  often  been  asserted,  in  the  Eastern  States,  that  the 
Mormon  settlement  in  Illinois  had  a  community  of  goods; 
but  this  is  not  the  case.  Individual  property  is  held,  and 
society  organized,  as  in  other  American  cities.  Not  far 
from  tile  city,  however,  is  a  community  farm,  which  is  cul- 
tivated in  common  by  the  poorer  classes  ;  but  in  the  city 
itself  each  family  has  an  acre  allotted  to  it. 

The  neighborhood  of  Nauvoo  is  pretty  thickly  populated, 
and  chiefly,  though  not  exclusively,  by  Mormons. 

The  population  of  the  Holy  City  itself  is  rather  of  a 
motley  kind.  The  general  gathering  of  the  Saints  has,  of 
coarse,  brought  together  men  of  all  classes  and  characters.. 
The  great  majority  of  them  are  uneducated  and  unpolished 
persons,  who  are  undoubtedly  sincere  believers  in  the 
Prophet  and  his  doctrines.  A  great  proportion  of  them 
consists  of  the  ignorant,  brutalized  converts  from  the  Ensr- 
lish  manufacturing  districts,  who  were  easily  persuaded  by 
Smith's  missionaries  to  exchange  their  wretchedness  at 
home  for  ease  and  plenty  in  the  Promised  Lnnd.  These 
men  arc  devotedly  attached  to  the  Prophet's  will,  and  obey 
his  dictates  as  they  would  those  of  God  himself. 

These  aliens  can,  by  the  law  of  Illinois,  vote,  after  six 
months'  residence  ixi  the  State ;    and  they  consequently  go 


192  HISTORY   OF   THE    SAINTS. 

blindly  to  the  polls,  and  cast  their  ballots  for  whoever  is  in 
favor  with  Joe  Smith,  and  has  the  expressed  approbation 
of  that  holy  personage.  To  such  an  extent  does  his  will 
influence  them,  that  at  the  last  election  in  Nauvoo  there 
were  but  six  votes  against  the  candidates  he  supported ! 
The  former  inhabitants  of  Hancock  county,  those  who  re- 
deemed it  from  the  wilderness,  are  almost  disfranchised  by 
these  new-comers,  whose  numbers  and  unanimity  give  them 
the  political  control  of  the  county,  and  enable  them  to  mo- 
nopolize all  civil  and  military  offices. 

I  need  say  but  little  more  of  Nauvoo  and  its  inhabitants, 
except  to  remark  that  the  great  mass  of  the  population  is 
composed  of  Mormons,  and  what  are  vulgarly  styled  Jack 
Mormons,  who  are  those  attached  to  the  Church  from  in- 
terest, but  who  do  not  possess  overmuch  faith  in  its  doc- 
trines, and,  indeed,  are  not  considered  Mormons. 

Of  the  Mormons,  I  believe  the  majority  to  be  ignorant, 
deluded  men,  really  and  earnestly  devoted  to  their  religion. 
But  their  leaders  are  men  of  intellect,  who  are  infidels,  and 
profess  Mormonism  because  of  the  wealth,  titles,  rank,  and 
power,  it  procures  them.  The  missionaries  who  are  sent 
out  to  convert  the  Gentiles,  are  chiefly  sincere  men,  whom 
Joe  cannot  trust  with  a  knowledge  of  his  iniquity,  and  who, 
from  their  intelligence,  would  soon  find  him  out,  if  they 
lived  at  Nauvoo.  Their  wives,  also,  are  sometimes  wanted 
for  the  cloister,  and  consequently  the  husbands  are  kept  at 
a  distance. 

As  a  military  position,  Nauvoo,  garrisoned  by  twenty  or 
thirty  thousand  fanatics,  armed  to  the  teeth,  and  well  sup- 
plied with  provisions,  would  be  one  of  the  most  formidable 
in  the  world.  It  is  unapproachable  upon  any  side  but  the 
east,  and  there  the  nature  of  the  ground  offers  great  obsta- 
cles to  besieging  operations.  It  is  Smith's  intention  to 
congregate  his  followers  there,  until  they  accumulate  a 
force  that  can  defy  any  thing  that  can  be  brought  against 
him. 

Nauvoo  is  a  Hebrew  word,  and  signifies  a  beautiful 
habitation  for  man,  carrying  with  it  the  idea  of  rest  ;  it 
is  not,  however,  considered  by  the  Mormons  their  final 
HOME,  but  a  resting-place  only  —  for  they  only  intend  to 
remain  there  until  they  have  gathered  force  sufficient  to 


CHARTERS,    ORDINANCES,    ETC.    ETC.  193 

enable  them  to  conquer  Independence,  in  Jackson  coun- 
Tv,  Missouri,  ivJtich  is  one  of  the  most  fertile,  pleasant, 
and  desirable  countries  on  the  face  of  the  earth,  possessing 
a  soil  unsurpassed  in  any  region.  Independence  they  con- 
sider their  Zion,  and  they  there  intend  to  rear  their  Great 
Te?.iple,  the  corner-stone  of  which  is  already  laid.  There 
is  to  be  the  great  gathering-place  for  all  the  Saints,  and  in 
that  delightful  and  healthy  country  they  expect  to  find  their 
Eden,  and  build  the  New  Jerusalem.  The  Missourians 
are  proverbial  for  their  hospitality,  but  they  will  never  yield 
a  country  of  such  surpassing  beauty,  superior  excellence, 
and  unbounded  fertility,  to  the  Latter  Day  Saints,  or  any 
other  saints,  without  a  valuable  consideration.  The  Mor- 
mons will  never  obtain  it  "  by  blood,"  as  they  contemplate, 
and  as  their  books  teach. 

"  Look  avell  to  the  west  ! !  "  Why,  only  think  of 
Western  Missouri,  the  Eden  of  America,  and  the  great 
St.  Louis,  the  Metropolis  of  the  Western  World, 
with  her  stupendous,  stately  edifices,  of  surpassing  beauty 
and  gorgeous,  princely  structure,  whose  future  glory  civic 
prophets  can  readily  see  without  the  assistance  of  the 
Urim  and  Thummim,  falling  into  the  hands  of  a  set  of 
Mormon  Desperadoes  ! !  Joe  had  better  take  another 
look  through  his  peep-stone,  for  he  v/as  certainly  mistaken 
when  he  made  the  prediction.  The  Lord  intends  that 
WHITE  FOLKS,  and  not  Mormons,  shall  possess  that  goodly 
land,  a  land  truly  "flowing  with  milk  and  honey,"  —  the 
desire  of  nations  —  the  glory  of  the  whole  earth. 


CHARTERS,   ORDINANCES,   ETC.   ETC. 

When  connected  with  the  Mormons,  I  wrote  and  pro- 
cured the  passage  of  the  following  charters  and  ordi- 
nances, with  the  exception  of  the  Algerine  Ordinance.  My 
limits  will  allow  me  to  publish  only  a  few  of  the  ordi- 
nances :  the  Rules  of  Order,  and  other  matters  connected 
with  the  City  and  University,  will  be  found  in  another  part 
of  this  E.xpose. 

17 


194  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

Extracts  from  Conference  Minidcs. 

"  On  motion.     Resolved,  That  a  committee  be  appointed  to  draft  a 
bill  for  the  incorporatinir  of  tlie  town  of  Nauvoo,  and  other  purposes. 

"  Rcsuiccd,  That  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  Dr.  J.  C.  Bennett,  and   R.  B. 
Thompson,  compose  said  committee. 

"  Rctolred,  That  Dr.  J.  C.  Bennett  be  appointed  delegate  to  Spring- 
field, to  urge  the  passage  of  said  bill  through  the  legislature. 

"  Dr.  Bennett,  from  the  committee  to  draft  a  charter  for  the  city, 
and  for  other  purposes,  reported  the  outlines  of  the  same. 

"  On  motion.     Resolved,  That  the  same  be  adopted." 

Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  I.,  No.  12,  p.  186. 


"  B}'^  the  politeness  of  Doctor  Bennett,  we  have  been  favored 
with  the  following  legislative  act,  incorporating  our  City,  Legion,  and 
University,  for  publication,  which  will,  no  doubt,  be  read  with  great 
satisfaction  by  all  who  have  an  interest  in  the  future  greatness  and 
prosperity  of  our  people  ;  to  wit  :  — 

"  Charters  of  the  '  City  of  Nauvoo,'  the  '  Nauvoo  Legion,'  and  the 
'University  of  the  City  of  Nauvoo.' 

" '  AN  ACT  TO  INCORPORATE  THE  CITY  OF  NAUVOO. 

"  '  Sec.  1.  Be  it  enacted,  by  the  people  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  rep- 
resented in  the  General  Assembly,  That  all  that  district  of  country 
embraced  within  the  following  boundaries,  to  wit :  beginning  at  the 
north-east  corner  of  section  thirtj-one,  in  township  seven,  north  of 
range  eight,  west  of  the  fourth  principal  meridian,  in  the  county 
of  Hancock,  and  running  thence  west  to  the  north-west  corner  of 
said  section,  thence  north  to  the  Mississippi  River,  thence  west  to 
the  middle  of  the  main  channel  of  the  said  river,  thence  down  the 
middle  of  said  channel  to  a  point  due  west  of  the  south-east  corner 
of  fractional  section  number  twelve,  in  township  six,  north  of  range 
nine,  west  of  the  fourth  principal  meridian,  thence  east  to  the  south- 
east corner  of  said  section  twelve,  thence  north  on  the  range  line 
between  township  six  north  and  range  eight  and  nine  west,  to  the 
south-west  corner  of  section  six,  in  township  six,  north  of  range 
eight  west,  thence  east  to  tlie  soutli-east  corner  of  said  section, 
thence  north  to  the  place  of  beginning,  including  the  town  plats  of 
Commerce  and  Nauvoo,  shall  hereafter  be  called,  and  known,  by 
the  name  of  the  '  City  of  Nauvoo,'  and  the  inliabitants  thereof  are 
hereby  constituted  a  body  corporate  and  politic  by  the  n;iine  afore- 
said, and  shall  liave  perpetual  succession,  and  may  have,  and  use,  a 
common  seal,  which  they  may  change,  and  alter,  at  pleasure. 

" '  Sec.  2.  WJienever  any  tract  of  land  adjoining  the  '  City  of 
Nauvoo  '  shall  have  been  laid  out  into  town  lots,  and  duly  recorded 
according  to  law,  the  same  shall  form  a  part  of  tlie  '  City  of  Nauvoo.' 

" '  Sec.  3.  The  inhabitants  of  said  city,  by  the  name  and  style 
aforesaid,  shall  have  power  to  sue  and  be  sued,  to  plead  and  be  im- 
pleaded, defend  and  be  defended,  in  all  courts  of  law  and  equit}', 
and  in  all  actions  whatsoever;  to  purchase,  receive,  and  hold  prop 
erty,  real  and  personal,  in  said  city;  to  purchase,  receive,  and  hold 
real  property  beyond  the  city  for  burying  grounds,  or  for  other 


CHARTERS,  ORDINANCES,   ETC.  ETC.  195 

public  purposes,  for  the  use  of  the  inhabitants  of  said  city ;  to  sell, 
lease,  convey,  or  dispose  of  property,  real  and  personal,  for  the  ben- 
efit of  the  city;  to  improve  and  protect  such  property,  and  to  do  all 
other  things  in  relation  tliereto  as  natural  persons. 

"  '  Sec.  4.  There  shall  bo  a  City  Council,  to  consist  of  a  Mayor, 
four  Aldermen,  and  nine  Councillors,  who  shall  have  the  qualiiica- 
tions  of  electors  of  said  city,  and  shall  be  chosen  by  the  qualitied 
voters  thereof,  and  shall  hold  their  offices  for  two  years,  and  until 
their  successors  shall  be  elected  and  qualiiied.  The  City  Council 
sha]^ judge  of  the  qualifications,  elections,  and  returns,  of  their  own 
members,  and  a  majority  of  them  shall  form  a  quorum  to  do  busi- 
ness, but  a  smaller  number  may  adjourn  from  day  to  day,  and  com- 
pel the  attendance  of  absent  members  under  such  penalties  as  -may 
be  prescribed  by  ordinance. 

"  '  Sec.  5.  The  Mayor,  Aldermen,  and  Councillors,  before  entering 
upon  the  duties  of  their  offices,  shall  take  and  subscribe  an  oath  or 
affirmation  that  they  will  support  the  Constitution  of  the  United 
States,  and  of  this  State,  and  that  they  will  well  and  truly  perform 
the  duties  of  their  offices  to  the  best  of  their  skill  and  abilities. 

"'  Sec.  6.  On  the  first  Monday  of  February  next,  and  every  two 
years  thereafter,  an  election  shall  be  held  for  the  election  of  one 
Mayor,  four  Aldermen,  and  nine  Councillors ;  and  at  the  first  elec- 
tion under  this  act,  three  judges  shall  be  chosen,  viva  voce,  by  the 
electors  present ;  the  said  judges  shall  choose  two  clerks,  and  the 
judges  and  clerks,  before  entermg  ujion  their  duties,  shall  take  and 
subscribe  an  oalh  or  affirmation  such  as  is  now  required  by  law  to 
be  taken  by  judges  and  clerks  of  other  elections  ;  and  at  all  subse- 
quent elections,  the  necessary  number  of  judges  and  clerks  shall  be 
appointed  by  the  City  Council.  At  the  first  election  so  held  the 
polls  shall  be  opened  at  d  o'clock,  A.  M.,  and  closed  at  6  o'clock, 
P.M.;  at  the  close  of  the  polls  the  votes  shall  be  counted  and  a 
statement  thereof  proclaimed  at  the  front  door  of  the  house  at  which 
said  election  shall  be  held ;  and  the  clerks  shall  leave  with  each 
person  elected,  or  at  his  usual  place  of  residence,  within  five  da\'s 
after  the  election,  a  written  notice  of  his  election,  and  each  person 
so  notified  shall  within  ten  days  after  the  election  take  the  oath  or 
affirmation  herein  before  mentioned,  a  certificate  of  which  oatli  shall 
be  deposited  with  tlie  Recorder  whose  appointment  is  iiereafter  pro- 
vided for,  and  be  by  him  preserved  ;  and  all  subsequent  elections 
shall  be  held,  conducted,  and  returns  thereof  made,  as  may  be  pro- 
vided for  by  ordinance  of  the  City  Council. 

"  '  Sec.  7.  All  free  white  male  inhabitants  who  are  of  the  age  of 
twenty-one  years,  who  are  entitled  to  vote  for  State  officers,  and 
who  shall  have  been  actual  residents  of  said  city  sixty  da3-s  next 
preceding  said  election,  shall  be  entitled  to  vote  for  city  officers. 

"  '  Sec.  8.  The  City  Council  shall  iiave  authority  to  levy  and  col- 
lect taxes  for  city  purposes  upon  all  property,  real  and  personal, 
within  the  limits  of  the  city,  not  exceeding  one  half  per  cent,  per 
annum,  upon  the  assessed  value  thereof,  and  may  enforce  the  pay- 
ment of  the  same  in  any  manner  to  be  provided  by  ordinance,  not 
repugnant  to  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States,  or  of  this  State. 

" '  Sec.  9.  The  City  Council  shall  have  power  to  appoint  a  Re- 
corder, Treasurer,  Assessor,  Marshal,  Supervisor  of  Streets,  and  all 


196  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

such  other  officers  as  may  be  necessary,  and  to  prescribe  their  du- 
ties, and  remove  them  from  office  at  pleasure. 

"  '  Sec.  10.  The  City  Council  shall  have  power  to  require  of  all 
officers  appointed  in  pursuance  of  this  act,  bonds,  with  penalty  and 
security,  for  the  faithful  performance  of  their  respective  duties, 
such  as  may  be  deemed  expedient ;  and,  also,  to  require  all  officers 
appointed  as  aforesaid  to  take  an  oath  for  the  faitliful  performance 
of  the  duties  of  their  respective  offices. 

"'  Sec.  11.  The  City  Council  shall  have  power  and  authority  to 
make,  ordain,  establish,  and  execute,  all  such  ordinances,  not  repug- 
nant to  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States,  or  of  this  State,  as 
tlicy  may  deem  necessary  for  tl'e  peace,  benefit,  good  order,  regula- 
tion, convenience,  and  cleanliness,  of  said  city  ;  for  the  protection 
of  property  therein  from  destruction  by  fire,  or  otherwise,  and  for 
the  health,  and  happiness,  thereof;  they  shall  have  power  to  fill  all 
vacancies  that  may  happen  by  death,  resignation,  or  removal,  in 
any  of  the  offices  herein  made  elective  ;  to  fix  and  establisJi  all  the 
fees  of  the  officers  of  said  corporation  not  herein  established ;  to 
impose  such  fines,  not  exceeding  one  hundred  dollars,  for  each 
offi^nce,  as  they  may  deem  just,  for  refusing  to  accept  any  office  in 
or  under  the  corporation,  or  for  misconduct  therein  ;  to  divide  the 
city  into  wards,  to  add  to  the  number  of  Aldermen  and  Councillors, 
and  apportion  them  among  the  several  wards,  as  may  be  most  just 
and  conducive  to  the  interest  of  the  city. 

"  '  Sec.  12.  To  license,  tax,  and  regulate,  auctions,  merchants, 
retailers,  grocers,  hawkers,  pedlers,  brokers,  pawn-brokers,  and 
money-changers. 

"  '  Sec.  13.  The  City  Council  shall  have  exclusive  power  within 
the  city,  by  ordinance,  to  license,  regulate,  and  restrain,  the  keeping 
of  ferries ;  to  regulate  the  police  of  the  city  ;  to  impose  fines,  forfeit- 
ures and  penalties,  for  the  breach  of  any  ordinance,  and  provide  for 
tlie  recovery  of  such  fines  and  forfeitures,  and  the  enforcement  of 
such  penalties,  and  to  pass  such  ordinances  as  may  be  necessary  and 
proper  for  carrying  into  execution  the  powers  specified  in  this  act ; 
Provided,  such  ordinances  are  not  repugnant  to  the  Constitution  of 
the  United  States,  or  of  this  State  :  and,  in  fine,  to  exercise  such 
other  legislative  powers  as  are  conferred  on  the  City  Council  of  tJie 
City  of  Springfield,  by  an  act  entitled  '  An  Act  to  incorporate  the 
City  of  Springfield,'  approved,  February  third,  one  thousand  eight 
hundred  and  torty. 

"  '  Sec.  14.  All  ordinances  passed  by  the  City  Council  shall,  vvithm 
one  month  after  they  shall  have  been  passed,  be  published  in  some 
newspaper  printed  in  tlie  city,  or  certified  copies  thereof  be  posted 
up  in  three  of  the  most  public  places  in  the  city. 

"  '  Sec.  15.  All  ordinances  of  the  city  may  be  proven  by  the  seal 
of  the  corporation,  and  when  printed  or  published  in  book  or  pam- 
phlet form,  purporting  to  be  printed  or  published  by  authority  of  the 
corporation,  the  same  shall  be  received  in  evidence  in  all  courts  or 
places  without  further  proof. 

"  '  Sec.  ]6.  The  Mayor  and  Aldermen  shall  be  conservators  of  the 
peace  within  the  limits  of  said  city,  and  shall  have  all  the  powers  of 
Justices  of  the  Peace  therein,  both  in  civil  and  criminal  cases  arising 
under  the  laws  of  the  State :  they  shall,  eis  Justices  of  the  Peace, 


CHARTERS,    ORDINANCES,    ETC.    ETC.  197 

within  the  limits  of  said  city,  perforin  tlie  same  duties,  be  governed 
by  the  same  laws,  give  the  same  bonds  and  secuiity,  as  other  Jus- 
tices of  the  Peace,  and  be  commissioned  as  Justices  of  the  Peace  in 
and  for  said  city  by  the  Governor. 

"  '  Sec.  17.  The  Mayor  shall  have  exclusive  jurisdiction  in  all 
cases  arising  under  tlie  ordinances  of  the  corporation,  and  sliall  issue 
such  process  as  may  be  necessary  to  carry  said  ordinances  into  exe- 
cution and  effect ;  appeals  may  be  had  from  any  decision  or  judg- 
ment of  said  Mayor  or  Aldermen,  arising  under  tlie  city  ordinances, 
to  the  Municipal  Court,  under  such  regulations  as  may  be  presented 
by  ordinance  ;  wliicli  court  sliaJl  be  composed  of  the  ]\Iayor  as  Chief 
Justice,  and  the  Aldermen  as  Associate  Justices,  and  from  the  final 
judgment  of  tlie  Municipal  Court,  to  the  Circuit  Court  of  Hancock 
county,  in  the  same  manner  as  appeals  are  taken  from  judgments 
of  Justices  of  the  Peace  ;  Provided,  that  the  parties  litigant  shall 
have  a  right  to  atrial  by  a  jur3'  of  twelve  men,  in  all  cases  before 
the  Municipal  Court.  The  Municipal  Court  shall  have  power  to 
grant  writs  of  habeas  corpus  in  all  cases  arising  under  the  ordinances 
of  the  City  Council. 

"  '  Sec.  18.  The  Municipal  Court  shall  sit  on  the  first  Monday  of 
every  month,  and  tiie  Cit}'  Council  at  such  times  and  place  as  may 
be  prescribed  by  city  ordinance  ;  special  meetings  of  which  may  at 
any  time  be  called  by  the  Mayor  or  any  two  Aldermen. 

"'Sec.  19.  All  process  issued  by  tlie  Mayor,  Aldermen,  or  Mu- 
nicipal Court,  shall  be  directed  to  the  Marslial,  and  in  the  execution 
thereof  he  sliall  be  governed  by  the  same  laws  as  are,  or  may  be, 
prescribed  for  the  direction  and  compensation  of  Constables  in  simi- 
lar cases.  The  Marshal  shall  also  perform  such  other  duties  as  may 
be  required  of  liim  under  the  ordinances  of  said  city,  and  shall  be 
tiie  principal  ministerial  otlrcer. 

"  •  Sec.  20.  It  shall  be  tlie  duty  of  the  Recorder  to  make  and  keep 
accurate  records  of  all  ordinances  made  by  the  City  Council,  and  of 
all  their  proceedings  in  their  corporate  capacity,  which  record  shall 
at  all  times  be  open  to  the  inspection  of  the  electors  of  said  city, 
and  shall  perforin  such  other  duties  as  may  be  required  of  him  by 
the  ordinances  of  the  City  Council,  and  shall  serve  as  Clerk  of  the 
Municipal  Court. 

"  '  Sec.  21 .  When  it  shall  be  nebessary  to  take  private  property  for 
opening,  widening,  or  altering,  any  public  street,  lane,  avenue,  or 
alley,  the  corporation  shall  make  a  just  compensation  therefor  to  the 
person  whose  property  is  so  taken,  and  if  the  amount  of  such  com- 
pensation cannot  be  agreed  upon,  the  Mayor  shall  cause  the  same  to 
be  ascertained  by  a  jury  of  six  disinterested  freeholders  of  the  city. 

'• '  Sec.  22.  All  jurors  empanneled  to  inquire  into  the  amount  of 
benefits  or  damages  that  shall  happen  to  tlie  owners  of  property  so 
proposed  to  be  taken,  shall  first  be  sworn  to  that  effect,  and  shall 
return  to  the  Mayor  their  inquest  in  writing,  signed  by  eacli  juror. 

"  '  Sec.  23.  In  case  the  Mayor  shall  at  any  time  be  guilty  of  a 
palpable  omission  of  duty,  or  shall  wilfully  and  corruptly  be  guilty 
of  oppression,  mal-conduct,  or  partiality  in  the  discharge  of  the  du- 
ties of  his  office,  he  shall  be  liable  to  be  indicted  in  the  Circuit 
Court  of  Hancock  county,  and,  on  conviction,  he  shall  be  fined 
not  more  than  two  hundred  dollars,  and  the  court  shall  have  power, 
17* 


193  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

on  the  recommendation  of  the  jury,  to  add  to  the  judgment  of  the 
court  that  he  be  removed  from  office. 

"  '  Sec.  24.  The  City  Council  may  establish  and  organize  an  in- 
stitution of  learning  within  the  limits  of  the  city,  for  the  teaching 
of  the  arts,  sciences,  and  learned  professions,  to  be  called  the  '  Uni- 
versity of  the  City  of  Nauvoo,'  which  institution  shall  be  under  the 
control  and  management  of  a  Board  of  Trustees,  consisting  of  a 
Chancellor,  Registrar,  and  twenty-three  Regents,  which  board  shall 
thereafter  be  a  body  corporate  and  politic,  with  perpetual  succession, 
by  the  name  of  the  '  Chancellor  and  Regents  of  the  University  of 
the  City  of  Nauvoo,'  and  shall  have  full  power  to  pass,  ordain, 
establish  and  execute  all  such  laws  and  ordinances  as  they  may  con- 
sider necessary  for  the  welfare  and  prosperity  of  said  University, 
its  officers  and  students;  Provided,  that  the  said  laws  and  ordi- 
nances shall  not  be  repugnant  to  the  Constitution  of  the  United 
States,  or  of  this  State  ;  and  Provided,  also,  that  the  Trustees  shall 
at  all  times  be  appointed  by  the  City  Council,  and  shall  have  all  the 
powers  and  privileges  for  the  advancement  of  the  cause  of  education 
which  appertain  to  the  Trustees  of  any  other  College  or  University 
of  this  State. 

"  '  Sec.  25.  The  City  Council  may  organize  the  inhabitants  of 
said  city,  subject  to  military  duty,  into  a  body  of  independent  mili- 
tary men  to  be  called  the  '  Nauvoo  Legion,'  the  Court  Martial  of 
which  shall  be  composed  of  the  commissioned  officers  of  said  Le- 
gion, and  constitute  the  law-making  department,  with  full  powers 
and  authority  to  make,  ordain,  establish,  and  execute  all  such  laws 
and  ordinances  as  may  be  considered  necessary  for  the  benefit, 
government,  and  regulation  of  said  Legion  ;  Provided,  said  Court 
Martial  shall  pass  no  law  or  act  repugnant  to,  or  inconsistent  witli, 
the  Constitution  of  the  United  States  or  of  this  State  ;  and  Provided, 
also,  that  the  officers  of  the  Legion  shall  be  commissioned  by  the 
Governor  of  the  State.  The  said  Legion  shall  perform  the  same 
amount  of  military  duty  as  is  now  or  may  be  hereafter  required  of 
the  regular  militia  of  the  State,  and  shall  be  at  the  disposal  of  the 
Mayor  in  executing  tiie  laws  and  ordinances  of  the  city  corporation 
and  the  laws  of  the  State,  and  at  the  disposal  of  the  Governor  for 
the  i)ublic  defence,  and  the  execution  of  the  laws  of  the  State  or  of 
the  United  States,  and  shall  be  entitled  to  their  proportion  of  the 
public  arms ;  and  Provided,  also,  that  said  Legion  shall  be  exempt 
from  all  other  military  duty. 

"  '  Sec.  26.  The  inhabitants  of  the  «  City  of  Nauvoo'  are  hereby 
exempted  from  working  on  any  road  beyond  the  limits  of  the  city, 
and  for  the  purpose  of  keeping  the  streets,  lanes,  avenues,  and  alleys, 
in  repair,  to  require  of  the  male  inhabitants  of  said  city,  over  the  age 
of  twenty-one,  and  under  fifty  years,  to  labor  on  said  streets,  lanes, 
avenues,  and  alleys,  not  exceeding  three  days  in  each  year ;  any 
person  failing  to  perform  such  labor  when  duly  notified  by  the  Su- 
pervisor, shall  forfeit  and  pay  the  sum  of  one  dollar  per  day  for  each 
day  so  neglected  or  refused. 

"  '  Sec.  27.  The  City  Council  shall  have  power  to  provide  for  the 
punishment  of  offenders,  by  imprisonment  in  the  county  or  city  jail, 
in  all  cases  when  such  offenders  shall  fail  or  refuse  to  pay  the  fines 
and  forfeitureB  which  may  be  recovered  against  them. 


CHARTERS,    ORDINANCES,    ETC.    ETC.  199 

" '  Sec.  28.  This  act  is  hereby  declared  to  be  a  public  act,  and  shall 
take  effect  on  the  first  Monday  of  February  next. 

"  '  Wm.  L.  D.  Ewing, 
"  '  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives. 
"'  S.  H.  Anderson, 

"  '  Speaker  of  the  Senate. 
"  '  Approved,  December  16,  1840. 

"'Tho.  Carlin.'" 

"  State  of  Illinois, 
Office  of  Secretary  of  State. 

"I,  Stephen  A.  Douglass,  Secretary  of  State,  do  hereby  certify 
that  the  foregoing  is  a  true  and  perfect  copy  of  the  enrolled  law  now 
on  file  in  my  office. 

Pi"  Witness  my  hand,  and  Seal  of  State,  at  Springfield, 
L"^-  ^-l       this  18th  day  of  December,  A.  D.  1840. 

"  S.  A.  Douglass, 

"  Secretary  of  Slate." 


"The  following  are  the  legislative  powers  alluded  to  in  the  13th 
section  of  the  foregoing  act,  as  pertaining  to  the  City  Council  of  the 
city  of  Springfield,  and  which,  consequently,  become  a  part  of  the 
charter  of  the  city  of  JNauvoo;  to  wit:  — 

"'OF  THE  LEGISLATIVE  POWERS   OF  THE  CITY   COUNCIL. 

"  '  Sec.  1.  The  City  Council  shall  have  powers  and  authority  to 
levy  and  collect  taxes  upon  all  property,  real  and  personal,  within 
the  city,  not  exceeding  one  half  per  cent,  per  annum  upon  the  as- 
sessed value  thereof,  and  may  enforce  the  payment  of  the  same  in 
any  manner  prescribed  by  ordinance  not  repugnant  to  the  Constitu- 
tion of  the  United  States  and  of  this  State. 

" '  Sec.  2.  The  City  Council  siiall  have  power  to  require  of  all 
officers  appointed  in  pursuance  of  this  charter,  bonds,  with  penalty 
and  security  for  the  faithful  performance  of  their  respective  duties, 
as  may  be  deemed  expedient,  and  also  to  require  all  officers  appoint- 
ed as  aforesaid  to  take  an  oath  for  the  faithful  performance  of  the 
duties  of  their  respective  offices  upon  entering  upon  the  discharge 
of  the  same. 

" '  Sec.  3.  To  establish,  support,  and  regulate  common  schools,  to 
borrow  money  on  the  credit  of^  the  city ;  Provided,  That  no  sum  or 
sums  of  money  shall  be  borrowed  at  a  greater  interest  than  six  per 
cent,  per  annum,  nor  shall  the  interest  on  the  aggregate  of  all  the 
sums  borrowed  and  outstanding  ever  exceed  one  half  of  the  city 
revenue  arising  for  taxes  assessed  on  real  property  within  the 
corporation. 

" '  Sec.  4.  To  make  regulations  to  prevent  the  introduction  of 
contagious  diseases  into  the  city,  to  make  quarantine  laws  for  that 
purpose,  and  enforce  the  same. 

" '  Sec.  5.  To  appropriate  and  provide  for  the  payment  of  the  debt 
[and]  expenses  of  the  city. 


200  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

" '  Sec.  6.  To  establish  hospitals,  and  make  regulations  for  the 
government  of  the  same. 

"  '  Sec.  7.  To  make  regulations  to  secure  the  general  health  of  the 
inhabitants,  to  declare  what  shall  be  a  nuisance,  and  to  prevent  and 
remove  the  same. 

"  '  Sec.  8.  To  provide  the  city  with  water,  to  dig  wells  and  erect 
pumps  in  the  streets  for  the  extinguishment  of  fires,  and  convenience 
of  the  inhabitants. 

"  '  Sec.  i>.  To  open,  alter,  widen,  extend, establish,  grade,  pave,  or 
otherv.'ise  improve  and  keep  in  repair  streets,  avenues,  lanes,  and 
alleys. 

" '  Sec.  ]0.    To  establish,  erect,  and  keep  in  repair,  bridges. 

"  '  Sec.  11.  To  divide  the  city  into  wards,  and  specify  the  bounda- 
ries thereof,  and  create  additional  wards,  as  the  occasion  may  require. 

"  '  Sec.  12.  To  provide  for  lighting  the  streets  and  erectnig  lamp- 
posts. 

"  '  Sec.  13.    To  establish,  support,  and  regulate  night  watches. 

"  '  Sec.  14.  To  erect  market-liouses,  establish  jnarkets  and  market- 
places, and  provide  for  tlie  government  and  regulation  tliereof. 

" '  Sec.  15.  To  provide  for  erecting  all  needful  buildings  for  the 
use  of  the  city. 

"  '  Sec.  16.  To  provide  for  enclosing,  improving,  [and]  regulating 
all  public  grounds  belonging  to  the  city. 

'• '  Sec.  17.  To  license,  tax,  [and]  regulate  auctioneers,  merchants, 
and  retailers,  grocers,  taverns,  ordinaries,  hawkers,  pedlers,  brokers, 
pawn-brokers,  and  money-cliangers. 

"  '  Sec.  18.  To  license,  tax,  and  regulate  hacking,  carriages,  wag- 
ons, carts,  and  drays,  and  fix  the  rates  to  be  charged  for  the  carriage 
of  persons,  and  for  the  wagonage,  cartage,  and  drayage  of  propertJ^ 

"'  Sec.  19.  To  license  and  regulate  porters,  and  fix  the  rates  of 
porterage. 

'"Sec.  20.  To  license  and  regulate  theatrical  and  other  exhibi- 
tions, shows,  and  amusements. 

"'Sec.  2].  To  tax,  restrain,  prohibit,  and  suppress  tippling- 
houses,  dram-shops,  gaming-houses,  bawdy  and  other  disorderly 
houses. 

"  '  Sec.  22.  To  provide  for  the  prevention  and  extinguishment  of 
fires,  and  to  organize  and  establish  fire  companies.  ' 

" '  Sec.  23.    To  regulate  the  fixing  of  chinmej's  and  the  flues ' 
thereof,  and  stove-pipes. 

•"'Sec.  24.    To   regulate   the   storage   of  gunpowder,    tar,   pitch, 
rosin,  and  other  combustible  materials. 

"  '  Sec.  25.  To  regulate  and  order  parapet  walls  and  partition 
fences. 

" '  Sec.  26.  To  establish  standard  weights  and  measures,  and 
regulate  the  weights  and  measures  to  be  used  in  the  city,  in  all 
other  cases  not  provided  for  by  \a.\v. 

"'  Sec.  27.  To  provide  for  the  inspection  and  measuring  of  lum- 
ber and  other  building  materials;  and  for  the  measurement  of  all 
kmds  of  mechanical  work. 

"'Sec.  28.  To  provide  for  the  inspection  and  weighing  of  hay, 
lime,  and  stone  coal,  the  measuring  of  charcoal,  firewood,  and  other 
fuel,  to  be  sold  or  used  within  the  city. 


CHARTERS,    ORDINANCES,    ETC.    ETC.  201 

"  '  Sec.  29.  To  provide  for  and  regulate  the  inspection  of  tobacco, 
and  of  beef,  pork,  flour,  meal,  and  whisky  in  barrels. 

"'Sec.  30.  To  regulate  the  weight,  quality,  and  price  of  bread 
sold  and  used  in  the  city. 

"  '  Sec.  31.  To  provide  for  taking  the  enumeration  of  the  inhab- 
itants of  the  city. 

"  '  Sec.  32.  To  regulate  the  election  of  city  ofRcers,  and  provide 
for  removing  from  office  any  person  holding  an  office  created  by 
ordinance. 

"  '  Sec.  33.  To  fix  the  compensation  of  all  city  officers,  and  regu- 
late the  fees  of  jurors,  witnesses,  and  others,  for  services  rendered 
under  this  act  or  any  ordinance. 

"  '  Sec.  34.  To  regulate  the  police  of  the  city,  to  impose  fines, 
and  forfeitures,  and  penalties,  for  the  breach  of  any  ordinance,  and 
provide  for  the  recovery  and  appropriation  of  such  fines  and  forfeit- 
ures, and  the  enforcement  of  such  penalties. 

"  '  Sec.  35.  The  City  Council  shall  have  exclusive  power  within 
the  city,  by  ordinance,  to  license,  regulate,  and  suppress  and  re- 
strain billiard  tables,  and  from  one  to  twenty  pin  alleys,  and  every 
other  description  of  gaming  or  gambling. 

"  '  Sec.  36.  The  City  Council  shall  have  power  to  make  all  ordi- 
nances which  shall  be  necessary  and  proper  for  carrying  into  exe- 
cution the  powers  specified  in  this  act,  so  that  such  ordinance  be 
not  repugnant  to,  nor  inconsistent  with,  the  Constitution  of  the 
United  States  or  of  this  State. 

"  '  Sec.  37.  The  style  of  the  ordinances  of  the  city  shall  be  • 
"  Be  it  ordained  by  the  City  Council  of  the  city  of  Springfield." 

" '  Sec.  38.  All  ordinances  passed  by  the  City  Council  shall, 
within  one  month  after  they  shall  have  been  passed,  be  published 
in  some  newspaper  published  in  the  city,  and  shall  not  be  in  force 
until  they  shall  have  been  published  as  aforesaid. 

"  '  Sec.  39.  All  ordinances  of  the  city  may  be  proven  by  the  seal 
of  the  corporation,  and  when  printed  and  published  by  authority  of 
the  corporation,  the  same  shall  be  received  in  evidence  in  all  courts 
and  places  vdthout  further  proof.' '  " 

Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  II.,  No.  6,  p.  281 — 236. 


"  NAUVOO  LEGION. 

"  By  a  letter  from  the  Hon.  S.  H.  Little,  of  the  State  Senate,  to 
General  Bennett,  it  appears  that  the  following  additional  section  in 
relation  to  our  Legion,  recently  forwarded  to  Esquire  Little  by  Gen- 
eral Bennett,  has  become  a  law,  to  wit :  — 

" '  Any  citizen  of  Hancock  county,  may,  by  voluntary  enrolm,e.nt, 
attach  himself  to  the  JVauvoo  Legion,  with  all  the  privileges  which 
appertain  to  that  independent  military  body.' 

"This  is  quite  a  privilege;  and  we  say  to  our  friends — Come 
on  and  enroll  yourselves,  so  that  there  ma}'  be  a  perfect  organization 
by  the  4^/i  of  July  next  —  which  day  we  wish  to  celebrate  with  appro- 


202  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

priate  military  honors.     The  Legion  will  be  called  out,  likewise,  on 
the  6th  of  Jipril."  —  Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  II.,  No.  8,  p.  320. 


"  AN  ACT 
TO  INCORPORATE  THE  NAUVOO  AGRICULTURAL  AND  MANU- 
FACTURING ASSOCIATION  IN  THE  COUNTY  OF  HANCOCK. 

"  Sec.  1.  Be  it  enacted  by  the  people  of  the  State  of  Illinois 
represented  in  the  General  Assembly,  That  Sidney  Rigdon,  George 
W.  Robinson,  Samuel  James,  Wilson  Law,  Daniel  H.  Wells,  Hyrum 
Smith,  George  Miller,  William  Marks,  Peter  Haws,  Vinson  Knight, 
John  Scott,  D.  C.  Smith,  William  Huntington,  Sen.,  Ebenezer  Rob- 
inson, R.  B.  Thompson,  William  Law,  James  Allred,  John  T.  Bar- 
nett,  Theodore  Turley,  John  C.  Bennett,  Elias  Higbee,  Isaac  Higbee, 
Joseph  Smith,  A.  Cutler,  Israel  Barlow,  R.  D.  Foster,  John  F.  Ol- 
ney,  John  Snider,  Leonard  Soby,  Orson  Pratt,  James  Kelly,  Sidney 
Knowlton,  John  P.  Greene,  John  F.  Weld,  and  their  associates  and 
successors,  are  hereby  constituted  a  body  corporate  and  politic,  by 
the  name  of  the  Nauvoo  Agricultural  and  Manufacturing  Associa- 
tion, and  by  that  name  shall  be  capable  of  suing  and  being  sued, 
pleading  and  being  impleaded,  answering  and  being  answered,  in  all 
courts  and  places,  and  may  have  a  conunon  seal,  and  may  alter  the 
same  at  pleasure. 

"  Sec.  2.  The  sole  object  and  purpose  of  said  association  shall 
be  for  the  promotion  of  agriculture  and  husbandry  in  all  its  branches, 
and  for  the  manufacture  of  flour,  lumber,  and  such  other  useful  arti- 
cles as  are  necessary  for  the  ordinary  purposes  of  life. 

"  Sec.  3.  The  capital  stock  of  said  association  shall  be  one  hun- 
dred thousand  dollars,  with  the  privilege  of  increasing  it  to  the  sum 
of  three  hundred  thousand  dollars,  to  be  divided  into  sliares  of  fifty 
dollars,  which  siiall  be  considered  personal  property,  and  be  assign- 
able in  such  manner  as  the  said  corporation  may  by  its  by-laws 
provide;  which  capital  stock  shall  be  exclusively  devoted  to  the 
object  and  purposes  set  forth  in  the  second  section  of  this  act,  and 
to  no  other  object  and  purposes,  and  to  the  same  end  the  said  corpo- 
ration shall  have  power  to  purchase,  hold,  and  convey  real  estate  and 
other  property  to  the  amount  of  its  capital. 

"  Sec.  4.  Said  corporation  shall  have  power  by  its  Trustees,  or  a 
majority  of  them  present  at  any  regularly-called  meeting,  to  make 
by-laws  for  its  own  government,  for  the  purpose  of  carrying  out  the 
objects  of  this  association,  Provided,  the  same  are  not  repugnant  to 
the  laws  and  Constitution  of  this  State,  or  of  the  United  States. 

"  Sec.  5.  Joseph  Smith,  Sidney  Rigdon,  and  William  Law,  shall 
be  commissioners  to  receive  subscriptions  for,  and  distribute  said 
capital  stock  for  said  corporation;  said  commissioners,  or  a  majority 
of  them,  shall  within  six  months  after  the  passage  of  this  act,  either 
hy  themselves  or  their  duly-appointed  agents,  open  a  subscription 
book  for  said  stock,  at  such  times  and  places  as  they  shall  appoint, 
and  at  the  time  of  subscription  for  such  stock,  at  least  ten  per  cent. 
upon  each  share  subscribed  for  shall  be  paid  to  said  commissioners, 
or  their  duly-appointed  agents,  and  the  remainder  of  said  stock  so 


CHARTERS,    ORDINANCES,    ETC.    ETC.  203 

subscribed  for,  shall  be  paid  I'n  such  sums,  and  at  such  times,  as  shall 
be  provided  for  by  the  by-laws  of  said  corporation. 

"  Sec.  6.  In  case  the  stock  of  said  corporation  sliall  not  all  be 
taken  up  within  one  year  from  the  passage  of  this  act,  the  duties  of 
said  commissioners  shall  cease,  and  the  Trustees  of  said  corporation, 
or  a  quorum  thereof,  may  thereafter  receive  subscriptions  to  said 
slock  from  time  to  time  until  tlie  whole  shall  be  subscribed. 

"  Sec.  7.  The  stock,  property  and  concerns  of  said  corporation 
shall  be  managed  by  twenty  Trustees,  who  shall  be  stockholders  of 
said  corporation,  any  five  of  whom,  to  be  designated  by  a  majority  of 
the  Trustees,  shall  form  a  quorum  for  the  transaction  of  all  ordinary 
business  of  said  corporation,  tiie  election  of  which  Trustees  shall  be 
annual.  The  first-mentioned  twenty  persons,  wliose  names  are  re- 
cited in  the  first  section  of  this  act,  shall  be  the  first  Trustees  of  said 
corporation,  and  shall  hold  their  offices  until  the  first  Monday  in 
September,  A.  D.  1841,  and  until  others  shall  be  elected  in  their 
places. 

"  Sec.  8.  The  Trustees  of  said  corporation  for  every  subsequent 
year,  shall  be  elected  on  the  first  Monday  of  September  in  each  and 
every  year,  at  such  place  as  the  Trustees  for  the  time  being  shall 
appoint,  and  of  which  election  they  shall  give  at  least  filteen  days' 
previous  notice,  by  advertisement  in  some  newspaper  in  or  near  the 
city  ot'Nauvoo.  At  every  election  of  Trustees,  each  stockliolder  shall 
be  entitled  to  one  vote  on  each  share  of  stock  owned  by  him,  Pro- 
vided^ that  no  stockholder  shall  be  entitled  to  more  than  twenty 
Votes,  and  said  stockiiolders  rnay  vote  either  in  person  or  by  proxy. 
The  election  for  Trustees  shall  be  conducted  in  such  manner  as  shall 
be  pointed  out  by  the  by-laws  of  said  corporation,  and  whenever  a 
vacancy  shall  happen  by  death,  resignation,  or  otherwise,  among  the 
Trustees,  the  remaining  Trustees  shall  have  power  to  fill  such  vacancy 
until  the  next  general  election  for  Trustees. 

"  Sec.  9.  Tlie  Trustees  of  said  corporation,  as  soon  as  may  be  after 
their  appointment  or  election  under  this  act,  shall  proceed  to  elect 
out  of  their  number  a  President,  Treasurer,  and  Secretary,  who  shall 
respectively  hold  their  offices  during  one  year,  and  until  others  shall 
be  elected  to  fill  their  places,  and  whose  duties  shall  be  defined  and 
prescribed  by  the  by-laws  of  the  corporation,  and  said  Trustees  shall 
also  appoint  such  agents  and  other  persons  as  may  be  necessary  to 
conduct  the  proper  business,  and  accomplish  Uie  declared  objects  of 
said  corporation,  and  shall  likewise  have  power  to  fill  any  vacancy 
occasioned  by  the  death,  resignation  or  removal  of  any  officer  of  said 
corporation. 

"  Sec.  10.  This  act  shall  be  construed  as  a  public  act,  and  con- 
tinue in  force  for  the  period  of  twenty  years.  And  the  Trustees 
appointed  under  the  provisions  of  this  act,  shall  hold  their  first 
meetino-  at  the  city  of  Nauvoo,  on  the  first  Monday  of  April,  A.  D. 
1841.  "VVm.  L.  D.  Ewing, 

"  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives. 
"  S.  H.  Anderson, 

"  Speaker  of  the  Senate. 

"  Approved,  February  27,  1841. 

"Tho.  Carlin." 


204  HISTORY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 

"State  of  Illinois,  )  I 

Office  of  Secretaky  of  State.     )  i 

"  I,  Lyman  Trumbull,  Secretary  of  State,  do  hereby  certify  the  i 

foregoing  to  be  a  true  and  perfect  copy  of  the  enrolled  law  on  hie  in  i 

my  ottice.  ! 

"  Given  under  my  hand,  and  Seal  of  State,  Springfield,  March  ' 

10,  1641.  i 

"  LvMAN  Trumbull,  ] 

"  Secretary  of  State." 
Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  II.,  No.  10,  pp.  355,  356.       I 


"AN   ACT 
TO  INCORPORATE  THE  NAUVOO   HOUSE   ASSOCIATION. 

"  Sec.  1.  Be  it  enacted  by  the  people  of  the  State  of  Illinois 
represented  in  the  General  Assembly,  That  George  Miller,  Lyman 
Wight,  John  Snider,  and  Peter  Haws  and  their  associates  are  hereby 
declared  a  body  corporate,  under  the  name  and  style  of  the  '  JWtuvoo 
House  Association,'  and  they  are  hereby  authorized  to  erect  and 
furnish  a  public  house  of  entertainment  to  be  called  the  '  Nauvoo 
House.' 

"  Sec.  2.  The  above-named  George  Miller,  Lyman  Wight, 
John  Snider,  and  Peter  Haws,  are  hereby  declared  to  be  the  Trus- 
tees of  said  association,  with  full  power  and  authority  to  hold  in 
joint  tenancy  by  themselves  and  their  successors  in  office,  a  certain 
lot  in  the  city  of  Nauvoo,  in  the  county  of  Hancock,  and  state  of 
Illinois,  known  and  designated  on  the  plot  of  said  city,  as  the  south 
half  of  lot  numbered  fifty-six,  for  the  purpose  of  erecting  thereon  the 
house  contemplated  in  the  first  section  of  this  act. 

"  Sec.  3.  The  said  Trustees  are  further  authorized  and  em- 
powered to  obtain  by  stock  subscription,  by  themselves  or  their  duly 
authorized  agents,  the  sum  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  thousand 
dollars,  which  shall  be  divided  into  shares  of  fifty  dollars  each. 

"  Sec.  4.  No  individual  shall  be  permitted  to  hold  more  than 
three  hundred  nor  less  than  one  shares  of  stock,  and  certificates  of 
stock  shall  be  delivered  to  subscribers,  so  soon  as  their  subscriptions 
are  paid  in,  and  not  before. 

"  Sec.  5.  As  soon  as  the  above  contemplated  house  shall  have 
been  completed  and  furnished,  the  stockholders  shall  appoint  such 
agents,  as  tiie  Trustees  may  deem  necessary  in  the  management  of 
the  affairs  of  said  association. 

"  Sec.  G.  The  Trustees  shall  have  power  to  sue  and  be  sued, 
plead  and  be  impleaded  in  any  court  of  this  State,  in  the  name  and 
style  of  the  'Trustees  of  the  Nauvoo  House  Association.' 

"  Sec.  7.  They  shall  also  take  tiie  general  care  and  supervision 
in  procuring  materials  for  said  house  and  constructing  and  erecting 
the  same,  and  further  to  superintend  its  general  management,  and  to 
do  and  perform  all  matters  and  things  which  may  be  necessary  to  bo 
done,  in  order  to  secure  the  interests  and  promote  the  objects  of  this 
association. 

"  Sec.  8.     This  association  shall  continue  twenty  years  from  the 


CHARTERS,    ORDINANCES,    ETC.    ETC.  205 

passage  of  this  act,  and  the  house  herein  provided  for,  shall  be  kept 
for  the  accommodation  of  strangers,  travellers,  and  all  otiier  persons 
vi'ho  may  resort  thereto,  for  rest  and  refreshment. 

"  Sec.  !).  It  is  moreover  established  as  a  perpetual  rule  of  said 
house,  to  be  observed  by  all  persons  who  may  keep  or  occupy  the 
same,  that  spirituous  liquors  of  every  description  are  prohibited,  and 
that  such  liquors  shall  never  be  vended  as  a  beverage,  or  introduced 
into  common  use,  in  said  house. 

"  Sec.  10.  And  whereas  Joseph  Smith  has  furnished  the  said 
association  with  the  ground  whereon  to  erect  said  house,  it  is  further 
declared,  that  the  said  Smith  and  his  heirs  shall  hold  by  perpetual 
succession  a  suite  of  rooms  in  the  said  house,  to  be  set  apart  and  con- 
veyed in  due  form  of  law  to  him  and  his  heirs  by  said  Trustees  as 
soon  as  the  same  are  completed. 

"  Sec.  11.  The  Board  of  Trustees  shall  appoint  one  of  their 
number  as  president  thereof. 

"  Wm.  L.  D.  Ewing, 
"  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives. 
"  S.  H.  Anderson, 

"  Speaker  of  the  Senate. 
"  Approved,  February  23, 1841. 

"  Tho.  Carlin." 

"  State  of  Illinois,  ) 

Office  of  Secretarv  of  State.  ) 

"  I,  Lyman  Trumbull,  Secretary  of  State,  do  hereby  certify  the 
foregoing  to  be  a  true  and  perfect  copy  of  the  enrolled  law  on  file  in 
my  office. 

"  Given  under  my  hand,  and  Seal  of  State,  Springfield,  March 
10,  1841.  Lyman  Trumbull, 

Secretary  of  State." 
Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  II.,  No.  11,  pp.  370,  371 


"  OFFICERS   OF   THE    CITY  OF  NAUVOO 

'■^  Mayor :  John  C.  Bennett.  —  Recorder:  James  Sloan.  —  Attornnj: 
Sidney  Rigdon. — Kotary  Public :  E.Robinson.  —  Marshal:  H.  G. 
Sherwood. —  Marshal  ad  interim  :  D.  B.  Huntington. —  Treasurer- 
John  S.  Fulmer.  —  Surveyor:  A.Ripley.  —  .Assessor  and  Collector  ■ 
Lewis  Robison.  —  Supervisor  of  Streets:  James  Allred. —  Weigher 
and  Sealer:  Theodore  Turley. — Market  Master :  Stephen  Markhara. 
—  Sexton  :  W.  D.  Huntington. 

"  First  Ward. 
'■'■Mdermen:  Samuel  H.  Smith,    Hiram  Kimball.  —  Councillors  . 
John  P.  Green,   Vinson  Knight,   Orson  Pratt,  Willard  Richards. — 
High  Constable:  D.  B.  Huntington. 

"  Second  Ward. 
"  Mdermen:  N.  K.  Whitney,  Orson  Spencer.  —  Councillors:  Hy- 
18 


206  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

rum  Smith,   Lyman  Wight,   Wilford  Woodruff,    John   Taylor.— 
High  Constable :  George  Morey. 

"  Third  Ward. 
"Aldermen:   Daniel  H.   Wells,    Gustavus  Hills.  —  Councillors: 
John  T.  Barnett,    C.  C.  Rich,    Hugh  McFall,   H.  C.  Kimball.— 
High  Constable :  Lewis  Robison. 

"  Fourth  Ward. 

"  Aldermen:  William  Marks,  George  W.  Harris. —  Councillors. 
Joseph  Smith,  Wilson  Law,  Brigham  Young,  William  Law.  — 
High  Constable  :  W.  D.  Huntington. 


"  The  City  Council  consists  of  the  Mayor,  Aldermen,  and  Coun- 
cillors, and  sits  on  the  first  and  third  Saturday  of  every  month, 
commencing  at  6  o'clock,  P.  M. 

"  Municipal  Court. 

"  Chief  Justice :  John  C.Bennett. — Associate  Jitsticcs :  Samuel 
H.  Smith,  Hiram  Kimball,  N.  K.  Whitney,  Orson  Spencer,  Daniel 
H.  Wells,  Gustavus  Hills,  William  Marks,  George  W.  Harris. — 
Clerk  :  James  Sloan. 

"  The  Municipal  Court  sits  on  the  first  Monday  hi  every  month, 
commencing  at  10  o'clock,  A.  M. 

"  Mayor's  Court. 

"  This  is  the  Criminal  Court  of  the  city,  and  sits  at  such  times 
as  the  business  of  the  city  requires  —  the  Mayor  presiding." 

Times  and  Seasoiis,  Vol.  HL,  No.  4,  p.  638 


"AN   ORDINANCE 
IN    RELATION   TO   THE    CITY    COUNCIL. 

"  Sec.  1.  Be  it  ordained  by  the  City  Council  of  the  city  of 
Nauvoo,  That  should  any  member  of  the  City  Council  absent  him- 
self from,  or  neglect  or  refuse  to  attend,  any  regular  or  special  meet- 
ing of  said  Council,  for  more  than  thirty  minutes  after  the  time 
appointed,  or  should  the  Marshal  or  Recorder  be  guilty  of  a  like 
offence,  he  shall  be  fined  in  the  sum  of  two  dollars  for  each  offence. 

"  Sec.  2.  Should  any  member  of  said  Council  neglect,  or  refuse, 
to  attend  said  meetings,  forthwith,  on  a  summons  from  the  Mayor, 
served  by  the  Marshal,  or  special  messenger  of  said  Council,  he  shall 
be  fined  in  the  sum  of  twenty-five  dollars,  for  each  offence  ;  Pro- 
vided, That  the  City  Council  may,  on  good  cause  shown,  remit  any 
fine  herein,  or  by  this  ordinance,  assessed. 

"  Sec.  3.  The  above  fines  to  be  collected  as  other  debts  before 
the  Mayor,  at  the  suit  of  the  city  corporation.  This  ordinance  to 
take  effect,  and  be  in  force,  from  and  after  its  passao^e. 

"  Passed,  February  8,  A.  D.  1841. 

"  John  C.  Bennett,  Maijor. 

"  James  Sloan,  Recorder." 

Times  and  Sca.sons,  Vol.  H.,  No.  8,  p.  322. 


CHARTERSj    ORDINANCES,    ETC.    ETC. 


207 


"AN    ORDINANCE 

FIXING    THE    COMPENSATION    OF    THE    CITY    COUNCIL,    AND 
FOR    OTHER    PURPOSES. 

"  Sec.  1.  Be  it  ordained  by  the  City  Council  of  the  city  of  Nau- 
voo,  That  from  and  after  the  passage  of  this  ordinance,  the  City 
Council  shall  meet  on  the  second  Saturday  of  every  month,  at  10 
o'clock,  A.  M.,  and  shall  continue  in  session  during  the  day,  and 
evening,  if  the  business  of  the  city  requires  it —  allowing  one  hour 
for  dinner,  and  one  for  supper;  and  the  said  monthly  meetings  shall 
be  called  '  The  Regular  Meetings  of  the  City  Council.' 

"  Sec.  2.  Each  member  of  the  City  Council  and  the  Recorder, 
and  Marshal,  shall  be  allowed  two  dollars  per  day  for  attendance, 
cooperation,  and  services,  at  said  regular  meetings;  and  each  per- 
son aforesaid,  shall  be  fined  in  the  sum  of  two  dollars  for  neglecting 
to  attend  at  any  such  regular  meeting,  without  an  excuse  satisfactory 
to  tiie  City  Council ;  and  for  each  part  of  a  day  so  attended,  or 
neglected,  a  proportionate  allowance,  or  fine,  shall  be  granted,  or 
assessed,  as  the  case  may  be. 

"  Sec.  3.  It  is  hereby  made  the  duty  of  the  Recorder  to  keep  a 
just  and  accurate  record  of  the  members  present,  including  the  Re- 
corder and  Marshal,  at  every  such  regular  meeting,  together  with  a 
full  list  of  absentees,  which  list  shall  be  returned  to  the  Mayor  for 
collection  of  fines  quarterly. 

"  Sec.  4.  Special  meetings  of  the  City  Counoil,  called  by  order 
of  the  Mayor,  by  summons  or  otherwise,  shall  be  governed  by  the 
aforesaid  regulations. 

"Sec.  5.  All  ordinances,  or  parts  of  ordinances,  contrary  to  the 
provisions  of  this  ordinance,  are  hereby  repealed.  This  ordinance 
to  take  effect,  and  be  in  force,  from  and  after  its  passage. 

"  Passed  January  22,  A.  D.  1842. 

"  John  C.  Bennett,  Mayor. 

"  James  Sx-oan,  Recorder." 

Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  III.,  No.  8,  p.  70J. 


By  what  stupid  knave  the  following  nondescript  Alge- 
rinc  Ordinance  was  penned  I  am  unable  to  say.  Suffice  it 
to  observe,  it  is  in  open  contravention  of  the  constitutional 
and  statute  laws,  and  a  palpable  violation  of  vested  char- 
tered rights.     I  give  it  as  it  is,  as  a  civic  curiosity. 

From  «  The  {JVauvoo)  Wasp''  of  August  13,  1842.  : 

"AN    ORDINANCE 

REGULATING   THE  MODE   OP  PROCEEDING  IN  CASES  OF  HABEAS 

CORPUS,  BEFORE  THE  MUNICIPAL  COURT. 

"  Sec.  1.  Be  it  ordained  by  the  City  Council  of  the  city  of  Nau- 
voo,  That  in  all  cases  where  any  person  or  persons,  shall  at  any 


208  HISTORY   OF   THE    SAINTS. 

time  hereafter,  be  arrested,  or  under  arrest,  in  this  city,  under  any 
writ  or  process,  and  shall  be  brought  before  the  Municipal  Court  of 
this  city,  by  virtue  of  a  writ  of  Habeas  Corpus,  the  court  shall  in 
every  such  case  have  power  and  authority  and  are  hereby  required 
to  examine  into  the  origin,  validity,  and  legality  of  the  writ  or  pro- 
cess, under  which  such  arrest  was  made,  and  if  it  shall  appear  to 
the  court  upon  sufficient  testimony,  that  said  writ  or  process  was 
illegally  or  not  legally  issued,  or  did  not  proceed  from  proper  au- 
thority, then  the  court  shall  discharge  the  prisoner  from  under  said 
arrest,  but  if  it  shall  appear  to  the  court,  that  said  writ  or  process 
had  issued  from  proper  authority,  and  was  a  legal  process,  the  court 
shall  then  proceed  and  fully  hear  the  merits  of  the  case,  upon  which 
such  arrest  was  made,  upon  such  evidence  as  may  be  produced  and 
sworn  before  said  court,  and  shall  have  power  to  adjourn  the  hear- 
ing, and  also  issue  process  from  time  to  time  in  their  discretion,  in 
order  to  procure  the  attendance  of  vv^itnesses,  so  that  a  fair  and 
impartial  trial  and  decision  may  be    obtained  in  every  such  case. 

"Sec.  2.  And  be  it  further  ordained.  That  if  upon  investigation 
it  shall  be  proven  before  the  Municipal  Court,  that  the  writ  or  process 
has  been  issued,  either  through  private  pique,  malicious  intent,  re- 
ligious or  other  persecution,  falsehood  or  misrepresentation,  contrary 
to  the  Constitution  of  this  State,  or  of  the  United  States,  the  said 
writ  or  process  shall  be  quashed  and  considered  of  no  force  or  effect, 
and  the  prisoner  or  prisoners  shall  be  released  and  discharged  there- 
from. ' 

"  Sec.  3.  And  be  it  also  further  ordained,  That  in  the  absence, 
sickness,  debility,  or  other  circumstances  disqualifying  or  preventing 
the  Mayor  from  officiating  in  his  office,  as  Chief  Justice  of  the 
Municipal  Court,  the  aldermen  present  shall  appoint  one  from 
amongst  them,  to  act  as  Chief  Justice  pro  tempore. 

"  Sec.  4.  This  ordinance  to  take  effect,  and  be  in  force,  from  and 
after  its  passage.  Hyrum  Smith, 

"  Vice-Mayor  and  President  pro  tempore. 

"  Passed  August  8,  1842.  "James  Sloan,  Recorder." 

The  Sangamo  Journal  of  September  2,  1842,  in  com- 
menting upon  this  ordinance  for  the  protection  of  Mormon 
culprits  and  outlaws,  concocted,  probably,  and  passed  by 
the  influence  of  the  Mormon  Collegium  de  Propaganda 
Fide,  for  the  especial  protection  of  Joe  Smith  and  other 
murderers  and  criminals,  very  justly  remarks, — 

"  We  copy  the  above  ordinance  in  order  to  show  our  readers  the 
barefaced  effrontery  with  which  the  holy  brotherhood  at  Nauvoo  set 
at  defiance  the  civil  authorities  of  the  State.  No  man  having  claims 
to  even  an  ordinary  share  of  common  sense,  can  ever  believe  that 
there  is  the  least  shadow  of  authority  in  the  City  Council  of  Nau- 
voo to  pass  such  an  ordinance  as  the  above ;  indeed  the  legislature 
of  this  State  has  not  power  to  do  it.  The  City  Charter  gives  to  the 
Municipal  Court  power  to  issue  writs  of  Habeas  Corpus.  Evidently 
tliis  power  is  only  granted  in  reference  to  cases  of  arrest  under  the 


CHARTERS,    ORDINANCES,    ETC.    ETC.  209 

municipal  laws,  and,  by  the  most  latitudinarian  construction,  cannot 
be  made  to  extend  to  cases  of  an  arrest  under  the  laws  of  the  State  ; 
but  this  Mormon  ordinance  not  only  extends  to  all  cases  of  arrest, 
but  sets  the  laws  of  the  United  States  at  defiance,  by  givingr  author- 
ity to  the  Municipal  Court  to  inquire  into  the  causes  of  the  arrest — 
a  power  which  even  the  legislature  of  this  State  cannot  confer. 

"  By  the  Constitution  and  laws  of  the  United  States,  the  Governor 
of  this  State  is  bound  to  deliver  up  fugitives  from  justice  on  the  re 
quisition  of  the  Governor  of  any  other  State ;  and  the  judiciary  of 
this  State  have  no  right  to  inquire,  under  any  circumstances,  into  any 
thing  further  than  the  sufficiency  of  the  writ  on  which  the  arrest  is 
made.  If  this  is  in  due  form,  and  properly  served,  there  is  no 
power  for  any  tribunal  in  this  State  to  make  any  further  inquiry. 
The  guilt  or  innocence  of  the  accused  must  be  determined  by  the 
courts  of  the  State  from  whence  the  requisition  issued ;  and  any 
court  of  law,  which  institutes  any  inquiry  of  this  nature,  oversteps 
the  boundaries  of  its  jurisdiction,  and  openly  sets  at  defiance  tiie 
laws  of  the  land. 

"  Now,  we  ask  our  citizens,  what  think  you  of  this  barefaced  de 
fiance  of  our  laws  by  the  City  Council  of  Nauvoo?  and,  if  persisted 
in,  what  must  be  the  final  result.'  If  these  things  are  suffered  to 
pass  unheeded  by  the  authorities  of  this  State,  who  is  safe,  whether 
in  his  person  or  property .''  A  Mormon  cut-throat  may  take  the  life 
of  one  of  our  citizens,  and  returning  to  the  City  of  the  Saints,  set 
at  defiance  the  laws  of  the  land. 

"  Independent  of  the  ordinance  above  quoted,  which  was  ev- 
idently designed  to  give  some  semblance  of  legality  to  the  protec- 
tion of  criminals,  we  believe  that  the  Mormon  Church  is  just  such  a 
body  as  can  be  shelter  to  every  blackleg,  cut-throat,  or  horse-thief, 
who  chooses  to  take  refuge  amongst  them.  While  under  the  pro- 
tection of  Joe,  who  can  harm  them  ?  What  means  has  an  officer  of 
either  discovering  or  arresting  a  man  sheltered  by  a  band  who 
regard  the  laws  of  the  land  as  secondary  to  the  commands  of  their 
Prophet?" 

This  is  an  act  of  "  outlawry  "  with  a  vengeance  !  The 
Mormon  Prophet  places  himself  above  the  operation  of  the 
laws,  and  puts  at  defiance  every  principle  of  criminal  juris- 
prudence, and  the  legitimately-constituted  authorities  of  his 
country  ! ! !  Sic  transit  gloria  miindi !  But  must  these 
things  be  tolerated  T  Never  !  No,  Never  ! !  NO, 
NEVER  !  !  !  Retributive  justice  must  put  forth  the  arm 
of  power,  and  pass  from  the  forum  to  the  fielB,  if  that  be 
necessary,  to  capture  refugees  and  fugitives  from  justice, 
and  make  them  bow  to  the  supremacy  of  the  laws.  Good 
officers  cannot,  will  not,  long  be  foiled  in  the  execution  of 
a  high  public  trust,  and  one,  too,  in  which  every  citizen 
of  the  commonwealth  is  so  deeply  interested. 
18* 


210  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

UNIVERSITY  OF  THE   CITY  OF  NAUVOO. 
Board  of  Regents. 

Chancellor:  Gen.  John  C.  Bennett,  M.  D.  —  Registrar:  Gen. 
William  Law.  —  Regents:  Gen.  Joseph  Smith,  Sidney  Rigdon,  Esq., 
Attorney  at  Law,  Gen.  Hyrum  Smith,  Rev.  William  Marks,  Rev. 
Samuel  H.  Smith,  Daniel  H.  Wells,  Esq.,  Bishop  N.  K.  Whitney, 
Gen.  Charles  C.  Rich,  Capt.  John  T.  Barnett,  Gen.  Wilson  Law, 
Rev.  John  P.  Greene,  Bishop  Vinson  Knight,  Isaac  Galland,  M.  D., 
Judge  Elias  Higbee,  Rev.  Robert  D.  Foster,  M.  D.,  Judge  James 
Adams,  Rev.  Samuel  Bennett,  M.  D.,  Ebenezer  Robinson,  Esq., 
Rev.  John  Snider,  Rt.  Rev.  George  Miller,  Lenos  M.  Knight,  M.  D., 
Rev.  John  Taylor,  and  Rev.  Heber  C.  Kimball. 

Faculty. 

James  Kelly,  A.  M.,  President. 

Orson  Pratt,  A.  M.,  Professor  of  Mathematics  and  English  Liter- 
ature. 

Orson  Spencer,  A.  M.,  Professor  of  Languages. 
Sidney  Rigdon,  D.  D.,  Professor  of  Church  History. 

School  Wardens  for  Commom  Schools. 

Wardens  of  First  Ward:  John  P.  Greene,  N.  K.  Whitney,  and 
A.  Morrison. 

Wardens  of  Second  Ward:  Charles  C.  Rich,  Wilson  Law,  and 
Elias  Higbee. 

Wardens  of  Third  Ward :  Daniel  H.  Wells,  R.  D.  Foster,  and  S. 
Winchester. 

Wardens  of  Fourth  Ward:  Vinson  Knight,  William  Law,  and  E. 
Robinson. 

President  Kelly  is  a  graduate  of  Trinity  College,  Dub- 
lin, and  is  a  ripe  scholar. 

Professor  Pratt  is  a  self-made  man,  and  has  had  to  en- 
counter great  difficulties  in  the  acquisition  of  an  edu- 
cation ;  but  he  has  surmounted  them  all.  As  a  teacher 
of  mathematics  and  English  literature  he  is  equalled  by 
few,  and  surpassed  by  none,  this  side  of  the  great  waters, 
as  the  proficiency  of  the  matriculates  of  the  university 
under  his  care  and  tuition  abundantly  testifies.  He  is  a 
gentleman  ctf  the  first  order  of  talents  —  than  whom  there 
is,  probably,  no  better  man  on  earth. 

Professor  Spencer  is  a  graduate  of  Union  College, 
N.  Y.,  in  the  arts,  and  of  the  Baptist  Literary  and  Theo- 
logical Seminary,  N.  Y.,  in  divinity. 

Professor  Rigdon  has  long  been  regarded,  by  both  ene- 


CHARTERS,    ORDINANCES,    ETC.    ETC.  211 

mies  and  friends,  as  an  accomplished  belles-lettres  scholar 
and  eloquent  orator,  possessing  both  the  sucwitcr  in  modo 
and  ihefortiter  in  re,  —  deeply  learned  in  that  department 
of  collegiate  education  which  has  been  assigned  him  in  the 
university.  His  character,  and  that  of  his  entire  family, 
is  considered  above  reproach.  Nothing  can  be  brought 
against  him,  I  am  persuaded,  but  his  connection  with  the 
Book  of  Mormon  and  Mormonisra. 

"University  of  the  Citt  of  Nauvoo,  Illinois,  ./?i(4/-«it  10,  A.  D.  J841. 

"  The  Regents  of  the  University  of  the  City  of  Nauvoo  will  con- 
vene at  the  office  of  General  Joseph  Smith,  on  Saturday,  the  4th 
day  of  September,  proximo,  at  half  past  10  o'clock,  A.  M.,  for  the 
transaction  of  important  business.     Punctual  attendance  is  requested. 

"  The  Department  of  English  Literature  is  now  in  successful 
operation  under  the  supervision  of  Professor  Orson  Pratt  —  a  gentle- 
man of  varied  knowledge  and  extensive  acquirements,  who  is  ad- 
mirably qualified  for  the  full  execution  of  the  high  trust  reposed  in 
him,  as  an  able  and  accomplished  teacher 

"  In  this  department,  a  general  Course  of  Mathematics,  including 
Arithmetic,  Algebra,  Geometry,  Conic  Sections,  Plane  Trigonom- 
etry, Mensuration,  Surveying,  Navigation,  Analytical,  Plane  and 
Spherical  Trigonometry,  Analytical  Geometry,  and  the  Differential 
and  Integral  Calculus  ;  —  Philosophy  ;  — Astronomy  ;  —  Chemistry ; 
—  etc.  etc.,  will  be  extensively  taught. 

"Tuition.  —  Five  Dollars  per  quarter,  payable  semi-quarterl}', 
in  advance. 

"  John  C.  Bennett,   Chancellor. 

"William  Law,  Registrar." 

Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  II.,  No.  20,  p.  517. 


NAUVOO   LEGION. 

This  military  organization  comprises  between  two  and 
three  thousand  well-disciplined  troops,  and  constitutes  a 
portion  of  the  militia  of  the  State  of  Illinois;  and  might, 
under  proper  management,  be  made  very  useful  to  the 
country.  It  is  a  division  divided  into  two  cohorts,  or 
brigades,  and  these  cohorts  subdivided  into  regiments, 
battalions,  and  companies.  The  organization  is  intended 
to  represent  a  Roman  legion.  I  have  not  space  in  this 
Expose  for  the  full  rank-roll,  and  must,  therefore,  content 
myself  with  giving  the  names  of  a  few  of  the  most  accom- 
plished, brave,  and  efficient  of  the  corps;  and  amongst 
them  I  would  enumerate,  — 


212  HISTORY   OF    THE    SAINTS. 

Gen.  George  W.  Robinson,  Capt.  C.  M.  Kreymyer, 
Gen.  Charles  C.  Rich,  Col.  John  F.  Weld,  M.  D.,  Col. 
Orson  Pratt,  A.  M.,  Capt.  Darwin  Chase,  Col.  Francis  M 
Higbee,  Col.  Carlos  Gove,  Col.  Chauncey  L.  Higbee, 
Capt.  John  F.  Olney,  Capt.  Justus  Morse,  Gen.  Davison 
Hibard,  Gen.  Hiram  Kimball,  Capt.  William  M.  Allred, 
Gen.  W.  P.  Lyon,  Capt.  L.  N.  Scovil,  Capt.  Charles  Alien, 
Col.  James  Sloan,  Lieut.  Stephen  H.  Goddard,  Capt.  Mar- 
cellus  Bates,  Col.  George  Schindle,  Col.  Amasa  Lyman, 
Col.  D.  B.  Smith,  Col.  George  Coulson,  M.  D.,  Col. 
Alexander  McRea,  Gen.  A.  P.  Rockwood,  Capt.  Amos 
Davis,  Col.  Jacob  B.  Backenstos,  Capt.  Samuel  Hicks, 
Col.  L.  Woodvvorth,  and  some  others  of  the  staff  and  line. 

Joseph  Smith,  the  Lieutenant-General,  is  a  military 
novice  of  the  first  water  and  magnitude,  scarcely  knowing 
the  difference  between  a  general  and  a  corporal  —  if  it 
only  has  the  rol  as  the  suffix,  Joe  is  therewith  content. 
By  the  bye,  however,  the  office  of  Lieutenant-General  is 
unknown  to  the  Constitution  of  the  State,  and  is,  therefore, 
a  nullity.  There  are,  likewise,  various  other  officers  who 
would  disgrace  the  forces  of  His  Tartarean  Majesty, 
amongst  w-hom  I  would  enumerate  Gen.  Robert  D.  Foster, 
M.  jf.,  Maj.  Willard  Richards,  Maj.  Hosea  Stout,  Capt. 
D.  B.  Huntingto"*,  and  others  of  the  staff  and  line. 

The  troops  are  very  tractable,  and  obedient  to  the  word 
of  command,  «nd  conduct  themselves  on  parade  in  a  highly 
creditable  and  the  most  orderly  manner  —  a  la  miUtaire. 

"COURT    iMAETIAL    OF    THE    NAUVOO   LEGION. 

"  Ordinance  No.  1. 

"  Sec.  1.  Be  it  ordained  by  the  Court  Martial  of  the  Nauvoo 
Legion  in  general  court  assembled,  That  tlie  discipline,  drill,  rules, 
regulations,  and  uniforms  of  the  United  States'  Army,  so  far  as  ap- 
plicable, be  and  they  hereby  are  adopted  for  the  Legion ;  Provided, 
That  each  companj'  may  adopt  its  own  uniform  for  the  non-commis- 
sioned officers  and  privates  belonging  to  it. 

"  Sec.  2.  That  from  and  after  the  15th  day  of  April  next,  it  shall 
be  the  duty  of  every  white  male  inhabitant  of  the  city  of  Nauvoo, 
between  eighteen  and  fortj^-five  j-ears  of  age,  to  enroll  himself  in 
some  company  of  the  Legion,  by  reporting  himself  to  the  Captain 
thereof,  within  fifteen  days  ;  and  every  person  neglecting  or  refusing 
to  do  so  shall,  on  conviction  thereof  before  a  regular  court  martial, 
forfeit  and  pay  the  sum  of  one  dollar,  and  the  further  sum  of  one 
dollar  for  every  subsequent  fifteen  days'  neglect. 

"  Sec.  3.  The  Legion  shall  hold  a  general  parade  ©n  the  Ist  Satur- 


CHARTERS,    ORDINANCES,    ETC.    ETC.  213 

day  of  May  and  September,  and  the  4th  day  of  July,  (the  3d  when 
the  4th  comes  on  Sunday,)  in,  or  near  the  city  of  jSlauvoo ;  a  bat- 
tahon  parade  on  the  :3d  Saturday  of  June  and  October,  in  their  re- 
spective precincts;  a  company  parade  on  the  4tli  Saturday  of  April, 
June,  and  August,  in  their  respective  precincts;  and  an  officer  drill 
on  the  Thursday  and  Friday  preceding  each  general  parade,  in  the 
city  of  Nauvoo;  and  such  other  musters  or  parades  as  the  Lieuten- 
ant-General,  and  tJie  Major-General,  may  jointly  direct,  in  each 
year :  and  any  non-commissioned  officer,  musician,  or  private,  who 
shall  neglect  or  refuse  to  appear  on  said  days,  shall  be  fined  in  the 
sum  of  one  dollar  for  each  company,  or  battalion  parade,  and  two 
dollars  for  each  general  parade  —  and  the  commissioned  officers  neg- 
lecting or  refusing  to  appear  in  their  appropriate  places  on  parade 
shall  be  fined  in  the  following  sums,  to  wit:  the  Lieutenant-General 
and  the  Major-General  —  thirty  dollars;  Brevet  Major-Generals  and 
Brigadier- Generals  —  twenty-five  dollars ;  Colonels  —  fifteen  dollars ; 
Lieutenant-Colonels  and  Majors  —  ten  dollars;  Captains  —  six  dol- 
lars; Lieutenants  —  four  dollars;  and  every  commissioned  officer, 
non-commissioned  officer,  musician,  or  private,  who  shall  neglect  or 
refuse  to  uniform  himself  in  full,  after  the  lapse  of  eigiit  months 
from  the  passage  of  this  act,  shall  be  fined  in  the  same  sums,  in  ad 
dition,  for  each  day  of  parade  —  every  commissioned  officer,  non 
commissioned  officer,  or  musician,  who  shall  neglect  or  refuse  to  at- 
tend officer  drills,  shall  be  fined  in  half  the  sums  aforesaid  —  and 
any  commissioned  officer  who  shall  neglect  or  refuse  to  attend  their 
appropriate  courts  martial  shall  be  fined  in  one  half  the  sums  afore- 
said—  and  any  commissioned  officer  neglecting,  or  refusing,  to  dis- 
charge any  duty  devolving  upon  him  shall,  in  addition,  be  cashiered 
and  disgraced,  by  a  general  court  martial,  detailed  by  the  Major- 
General  by  order  of  the  Lieutenant-General :  Provided,  always, 
That  all  members  of  this  corporation,  who  are  unable  to  attend 
parades  on  account  of  sickness  in  their  families,  or  any  other  reason- 
able excuse,  satisfactory  to  the  court  martial,  shall,  for  the  time  be- 
ing, be  exempt  from  all  such  fines. 

"  Sec.  4.  That  no  person  whatever,  residing  within  the  limits  of 
the  city  of  Nauvoo,  of  fifteen  days'  residence,  between  the  ages  of 
18  and  45  years,  excepting  such  as  are  exempted  by  the  laws  of  the 
United  States,  shall  be  exempt  from  military  duty,  unless  exempted 
by  a  special  act  of  the  court  martial  of  the  Legion  ;  or  a  certificate 
of  inability,  under  oath,  signed  by  the  Lieutenant-General,  counter- 
signed by  the  Surgeon-General,  and  recorded  by  the  Major-Gen- 
eral's War  Secretary. 

"  Sec.  5.  Each  regimental  court  of  assessment  of  fines  shall  be 
composed  of  the  Major  as  President  — the  Adjutant  as  Secretary  — 
and  the  Captains  of  companies  as  members;  and  tlie  court  of  ap- 
peals shall  be  composed  of  the  Colonel  as  President  —  the  Adjutant 
as  Secretary  — and  the  Lieutenant-Colonel  and  Major  as  members, 
—  the  court  of  assessment  shall  sit  on  the  Saturday  succeeding  each 
general  parade,  and  the  court  of  appeals  on  the*  second  Saturday 
thereafter,  at  such  places  as  the  Colonel  may  direct. 

"  Sec.  6.  The  regular  court  and  law  days"  of  the  court  martial  of 
the  Legion,  constituting  the  law-making  department  of  the  corpo- 


214  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

ration,  shall  be  the  1st  Friday  of  March,  June,  September,  and  De- 
cember, and  such  other  days  as  may  be  appointed  by  the  joint  gen- 
eral orders  of  the  Lieutenant-General  and  the  Major-General,  with- 
in the  city  of  Nauvoo,  on  a  notice  of  ten  days. 

"  Sec.  7.  The  statF  of  the  Lieutenant-General  shall  consist  of  an 
Inspector-General  with  the  rank  of  Major-General,  a  Drill  officer, 
a  Judge-Advocate,  and  four  Aids-de-Camp,  with  the  rank  of  Colo- 
nels; and  a  guard  of  twelve  Aids-de-Camp,  and  a  Herald  and 
Armor-Bearer,  with  the  rank  of  Captain. 

"  Sec.  8.  The  staiT  of  the  Major-General  shall  consist  of  an  Ad- 
jutant-General, a  Surgeon-General,  a  Cornet,  a  Quarter-Master- 
General,  a  Commissary-General,  a  Pay-Master-General,  a  Chaplain, 
two  Assistant  inspectors- General,  four  Aids-de-Camp,  and  a  War 
Secretary,  with  the  rank  of  Colonel;  a  Quarter-Master,  Sergeant, 
Sergeant-Major,  and  Cliief  Musician,  with  the  rank  of  Major;  and 
four  Musicians,  and  a  Herald  and  Armor-Bearer,  with  the  rank  of 
Captain. 

"  Sec.  9.  The  staff  of  each  Brigadier- General  shall  consist  of  two 
Aids-de-Camp,  an  Assistant  Quarter-Master- General,  an  Assistant 
Commissary- General,  and  a  Surgeon,  with  the  rank  of  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  ;  six  Assistant  Chaplains,  with  the  rank  of  Major ;  and  a 
Herald  and  Armor-Bearer,  with  the  rank  of  Captain. 

"  Sec.  10.  The  staff  of  each  Colonel  shall  consist  of  an  Adjutant, 
a  Quarter-Master-Sergeant,  and  a  Sergeant-Major,  with  the  rank  of 
Captain. 

"  Sec.  11.  Each  Regiment  shall  be  officered  with  a  Colonel,  a 
Lieutenant-Colonel,  a  Major,  and  company  officers. 

"  Sec.  12.  Each  Company  shall  be  officered  with  a  Captain,  three 
Lieutenants,  five  Sergeants,  one  Pioneer,  and  four  Corporals. 

"  Sec.  13.  The  Lieutenant-General,  and  the  Major-General,  may 
by  their  joint  act  grant  brevet  commissions  to  such  persons  as  may 
merit  appointment  and  promotion  at  their  hands. 

"  Sec.  14.  That  all  laws,  and  parts  of  laws,  inconsistent  with  this 
ordinance,  bo  and  they  hereby  are  repealed. 

"Passed  March  12th,  1842. 

"  Joseph  Smith, 
"  Lieutenant-General,  and  President  of  the  Court  Martial. 
"  John  C.  Bennett^ 
"  Major-General,  and  Secretary  of  the  Court  Martial." 
Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  HL,  No.  10,  pp.  733,  734. 


THE   CALL. 


The  Sangamo  Journal,  of  July  1,  1842,  says  that  the 
recent  acts  of  the  Prophet  and  the  position  of  the  Mor- 
mons have  attracted 

" public  attention    to   the   movements  of  Joe   Smith, — 


THE     CALL.  215 

io  the  tyranny  exercised  by  him  over  liis  followers,  —  to  the  moral 
principles  by  which  he  is  governed ;  and  it  is  now  not  likely  that  he 
will  much  longer  deceive  the  mass  of  the  people,  hov\-ever  much  he 
may  deceive  those  who  have  surrendered  all  their  interests  —  spirit- 
ual and  temporal  —  into  his  hands. 

"  There  are  individuals  in  his  flock,  possessed  of  talents  and  dis- 
position to  use  them  for  the  benefit  of  their  sect  and  the  country. 
Among  these  individuals  we  reckon  General  Bennett,  Sidney  Rigdon, 
Esq.,  Mr.  George  Robinson,  and  others.  But  tlie  Prophet  will 
scarcely  permit  them  to  think  or  act,  except  in  entire  subservience 
to  his  wishes.  It  is  now  understood  that,  within  a  few  da^s  past, . 
Smith  has  made  a  desperate,  blackguai'd,  and  abusive  public  attack 
on  General  Bennett,  Sir.  Rigdon,  and  Mr.  Robinson ;  and  reports  — 
and  we  place  great  reliance  upon  them  —  go  so  far  as  to  say  that  the 
life  of  the  former  has  been  tlireatened,  and  that  orders  have  been 
issued  to  the  Danitc  Band  to  murder  him  in  a  clandestine  manner  on 
the  first  opportunity.  Indeed,  the  report  goes.furtlier,  and  states  that 
two  of  the  Danites  have  been  in  hot  pursuit  of  General  Bennett  for  sev- 
eral days,  in  order  to  accomplish  tlie  nefarious  purpose,  and  tlms  pre- 
vent a  public  exposition  of  the  corruptions  of  the  great  Impostor. 

"  We  call  upon  the  people  of  our  State  to  have  an  eye  upon  this 
matter,  and,  it"  either  of  the  individuals  mentioned  should  be  miss- 
ing, that  there  shall  be  no  hesitation  in  placing  the  responsibility 
of  the  act  upon  its  proper  authors,  and  in  making  them  feel  in  their 
own  persons  that  murder  shall  be  avenged. 

"  We  take  no  pleasure  in  placing  these  remarks  upon  paper.  If  a 
secret  band  of  assassins  shall  prowl  about  among  this  community, 
who  is  safe  ?  The  fate  of  Governor  Boggs  is  an  event  not  to  be  un- 
heeded. But  we  should  be  unworthy  of  our  position,  should  we  fail 
to  meet  this  matter  as  it  deserves.  And  we  now  call  upon  General 
Bennett,  if  the  rumors  we  have  stated  have  just  foundation,  '  to  take 
his  life  into  his  hands,'  if  that  be  required,  and,  with  the  true  spirit 
of  a  soldier  and  a  patriot,  expose  the  crimes,  if  such  exist,  of  tiie 
Heaven-daring  Impostor.  We  call  upon  General  Bennett  to  come 
out  NOW.  We  appeal  to  him  to  do  this  in  behalf  of  his  fellow-citizens, 
who  claim  this  of  him,  by  all  the  considerations  which  can  be  pre- 
sented to  him  as  a  lover  of  his  species  and  as  the  servant  of  his  God. 
Such  an  exposure  ma}'  save  life  —  majj^  expose  corruption  —  ma^r 
avert  consequences  whicJi  no  man  can  contemplate  without  fearful 
apprehensions.  We  call  ujjon  General  Bennett  to  produce  docu- 
mentary evidence,  that  t!ie  public  may  form  opinions  tliat  cannot  be 
gainsaid  — that  they  may  understand  the  entire  character,  as  it  stands 
naked  before  his  God,  of  a  long  successful  religious  Impostor. 

"  Among  the  subjects  which  we  call  upon  General  Bennett,  Messrs. 
S.  Rigdon,  G.  VV.  Robinson,  and  others,  to  notice,  arc  the  rumors 
that  Joe  Smith,  some  short  time  before  he  applied  for  the  benefits  of 
the  bankrupt  law,  was  in  possession  of  most  valuable  property  — 
a  part  of  which  he  made  over  to  himself  as  sole  trustee  for  the  use  of 
the  iMormon  Church,  and  another  part  for  the  use,  of  his  wife  and 
children.  The  records  of  Hancock  county  will  show  if  these  things 
are  so.  And  if  these  rumors  are  true,  we  call  upon  Mr.  Robinson 
to  come  here  with  his  proof,  and  let  it  be  placed  before  the  U.  S. 
Circuit  Court  at  its  first  session.     We  trust  that  tJiere  will  be  no 


216  HISTORY    or    THE    SAINTS. 

hesitation  in  doing  this  —  that  there  will  be  no  compromise — no 
eiForts  to  injure  the  innocent,  and  no  pains  spared  to  expose  the 
guilty. 

"  Such  is  the  opinion  we  hold  of  General  Bennett,  that  we  shall 
expect  he  will  respond  to  the  calls  made  in  this  article.  It  appears 
to  us,  under  all  tlie  circumstances  of  the  case,  he  will  not  refuse  to 
do  so.  While  he  will  be  upon  his  guard  against  midnight  assassi- 
nation—  while  he  will  regard  with  contempt  the  '  bulls  of  excom- 
munication'  issued  against  him  —  lie  will  proceed  to  make  develop- 
ments that  will  astonish  the  world." 

To  this  Call  I  have  responded,  and  this  Expose  contains 
the  evidence  that  I  have  been  enabled  to  procure.  The 
public  can  now  judge  for  themselves.  I  will  simply  say  that 
my  motives  have  been  impugned,  and  my  conduct  animad- 
verted upon,  by  those  persons  and  presses  only  who  are 
either  in  the  pay  of  the  Prophet,  or  profoundly  ignorant  of 
the  nature  of  the  Mormon  difficulties.  The  leading  public 
journals  of  the  country  have  sustained  me,  and  the  cause 
of  truth,  morality,  and  true  religion,  against  knavery, 
corruption,  and  religious  fraud  and  imposture.  The  truth 
of  the  disclosures  in  this  Expose  does  not  at  all  depend 
upon  my  testimony,  but  upon  a  concatenation  of  circum- 
stances and  events,  substantiated  by  depositions,  affidavits, 
and  statements,  of  so  irresistible  a  character,  as  to  carry 
conviction  to  the  mind  of  every  intelligent,  honest  indi- 
vidual. The  truth  is  as  clear  as  the  sun  in  the  firmament 
at  noonday  —  whatever  may  be  said  to  the  contrary,  by 
the  Prophet  and  his  myrmidons  in  the  Holy  City,  or  their 
powerful,  but  mistaken,  ally  —  the  able  "Napoleon"  Edi- 
tor of  the  Herald,  in  the  eastern  metropolis.  The  public 
press  has  always  been,  and  will  always  be,  divided  into 
two  grand  parties  —  the  one  contends  for  golden  lore, 
and  sustains  the  cause  of  truth  and  im-tiie,  —  the  other 
contends  for  golden  ore,  and  pleads  the  cause  of  false- 
hood, corruption,  and  fraud:  the  former  embraces  the 
grand  mass  of  leading  journals ;  the  latter,  the  scurrilous, 
egotistical,  puff-ball  sheets,  which  so  often  infest  the  com- 
munity, and  prove  a  serious  annoyance  to  the  moral  com- 
monwealth. "  Truth  is  mighty,  and  will  prevail,"  and 
the  God  cf  all  truth  will  sustain  it  at  the  winding-up  scene. 
Though  the  earth  be  dissolved,  and  the  heavens  fall,  the 
truth  of  the  disclosures  in  this  Expose  will  appear  brighter 
and  brighter,  until  the  great  day  of  final  retribution. 


"  THE    MORMON    SERAGLIO.  217 

THE   MORMON   SERAGLIO. 

From  the  Louisville  Journal. 

"  General  Bennett  has  written  us  another  letter.  How  long  are 
the  God-defying  leaders  of  the  Mormons  to  be  allowed  to  perpetrate 
their  horrible  outrages  with  impunity  ? 

*'  To  the  Editors  of  the  Louisville  Journal  : 

"Cleveland,  Oliio,  July  30,  184:2. 

"  I  wrote  you  from  Cincinnati,  according  to  promise,  and  I  pre- 
sume you  are  in  receipt  of  that  hurried  production,  which,  however, 
may  not  be  wholly  uninteresting.  Tliis  letter  will,  of  necessity,  be 
short  and  hurried  as  the  former,  as  all  communications  tcritten  upon 
the  icing,  must  necessarily  be. 

"  In  the  New  York  Plerald,  of  the  26th  inst.,  the  editor  says, 
'  Tills  presents  a  strange  and  curious  state  of  things  for  the  centre 
of  the  niueteentli  century ;  and  the  developments  are  the  most 
remarkable  we  ever  heard  of.  The  initiatory  proceedings  at  Joe's 
"Order  Lodge"  resemble  those  practised  by  Matthias  at  Pearson's 
house,  only  his  members  were  females,  and  they  danced  round  a 
stone,  whilst  Mattliias  anointed  them.  But,  perhaps,  after  all,  Joe 
Smith  has  a  secret  lodge  of  women  !  We  shall  see.'  Yes,  Joe  has 
a  secret  lodge  of  women !  and  the  editor  loilL  see.  Joe's  female 
lodge  (the  Mormon  inquisition,  and  seraglio)  is  the  most  singular 
tiling  of  the  age.  The  anointing,  a  la  Joe,  is  a  caution  to  David 
Crocket.  The  investment,  the  ocith,  the  ceremonies,  the  lectures,  and 
the  GRAND  FINALE,  are  all  done  up  in  such  a  manner,  as  to  place 
Matthias  in  the  shade,  and  to  cover  Mahomet,  the  Oriental  prophet, 
in  the  rubbish  of  things  that  were.  The  '  Historj^  of  the  Saints' 
will  give  a  full  account  of  this  nondescript  lodge  of  the  Mormon 
ladies  of  pleasure  and  the  fine  arts,  including  all  their  Cloistered, 
Chambered,  and  Cyprian  maids  and  maidens  !  ! 

"  The  elections  will  terminate  next  Monday,  and  I  hope  that 
Missouri  will  then  demand  Joe,  and  secure  him.  I  will  be  ready  to 
make  good  the  charges ;  and  politicians  will  then  see  whether  the 
Mormon  disclosures  were  made  for  political  effect.  Time  will  de- 
velop facts,  and  show  the  truth,  the  undeniable  truth,  of  all  the 
charges  against  Smith,  as  clear  as  the  sun  in  the  firmament  at  noon- 
day. The  Roman  pontiff  never  exercised  the  domination  over  the 
minds  and  property  of  the  Catholic  church,  as  Joe,  the  chief  of  the 
Mormon  hierarchy,  does  over  his  subjects  —  the  fiiithful ;  and  the 
pontifical  bull  is  harmless  in  comparison  with  the  Mormon  bull, 
(Joe's  letter  of  marque  and  reprisal,)  as  the  latter  terminates  not  in 
spiritual  excommunication  and  damnation  from  all  Mormon  gospel 
privileges  from  off  the  face  of  God's  earth,  b\it  in  murder,  cold- 
blooded, Danite  murder  !  Joe  is  now  making  a  desperate  struggle  to 
save  himself  from  merited  disgrace  and  condign  punishment,  by  the 
lorgeries  and  perjuries  of  his  Cyprian  girls,  cloistered  and  chambered 
19 


218  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

mistresses,  and  the  Danites.  If  you  will  take  the  trouble  to  examine 
all  the  evidence,  you  will  find  that  forgery,  perjury,  theft,  robbery, 
burglary,  arson,  treason,  and  murder,  are  vtry  little  tilings  in  the  eyes 
of  the  Mormons,  so  long  as  the  Holy  Joe  can,  by  a  '  Tlivs  saitk  the 
Lord,^  pardon  initpiity,  transgression,  and  sin  !  !  Joe's  father,  the 
devil,  was  a  liar  from  the  beginning,  and  the  world  believed  him 
not;  neither  will  they  believe  Joe,  the  son,  the  delectable  modern 
Prophet  of  the  Latter  Day  Sinners ;  nor  the  sworn  Danites,  the  grand- 
children, though  covered  with  all  the  habiliments  of  latter  day 
glory. 

'•  Joe's  words  are  lies,  and  the  affidavits  of  his  followers  and  friends, 
PATENT  LIES.  Tlicy  swcar  as  they  are  moved  upon  by  Joe's  holy 
ghost,  and  say  the  things  that  gold,  or  interest,  or  the  Prophet's 
mandate,  dictates  !  ! 

"In  haste,  yours,  respectfully, 

"  John  C.  Bennett." 


The  most  extraordinary  and  infamous  feature  of  the 
social  and  religious  system  established  by  the  Mormon 
Prophet,  and  one  in  which  he  closely  resembles  his  master 
and  model,  Mahomet,  is  the  secret  regulations  he  has 
formed  for  directing  the  relations  of  the  sexes. 

The  scenes  and  practices  I  am  about  to  reveal,  will,  I 
am  aware,  be  considered  almost  incredible,  when  related 
'  as  occurring  in  a  civilized  and  Christian  country,  and 
in  the  enlightened  nineteenth  century.  Their  enormity 
would  appear  marvellous,  if  they  had  been  transacted  in 
the  most  luxurious  and  corrupt  empires  of  pagan  antiquity, 
or  at  any  of  those  licentious  Oriental  courts,  where  de- 
bauchery has  been,  for  ages,  systematized  and  sanctioned 
by  law  and  religion,  on  the  most  extensive  scale.  The 
profligacy  of  Sardanapalus,  of  Solomon,  of  Tiberius,  of 
Heliogabalus,  and  of  the  modern  Turkish  and  Moorish 
sultans,  has  been  fully  equalled  by  that  of  an  American 
Citizen  in  our  own  day,  and  one,  too,  who  professes  to  be 
the  Prophet  of  the  Lord,  and  the  founder  of  a  new  and 
more  holy  religion  than  any  now  existing. 

Before  proceeding  to  describe  the  Mormon  seraglio,  it 
may  not  be  amiss  to  speak  of  similar  institutions  on  the 
eastern  continent,  from  which,  undoubtedly,  the  Holy  Joe 
first  derived  the  idea  of  his  more  extensive  and  elaborate 
system.  The  earliest  one  on  record,  we  believe,  is  that 
of  King  Solomon,  formed  by  him  after  he  had  fallen  from 
his  religion,  and  become  corrupted  and  enslaved  by  the 
fascinations  of  the  women  of  Egypt.     The  Hebrew  records 


THE    MORMON    SERAGLIO.  219 

give  US  no  other  details  of  his  harem,  than  the  mere  num- 
ber of  its  inmates. 

It  is  in  the  histories,  however,  of  the  Oriental  and 
African  monarchs,  both  in  ancient  and  modern  times,  that 
we  find  the  most  glaring  examples  of  the  practice  of  polyg- 
amy and  concubinage.  We  read  of  Persian,  Chinese,  and 
Moorish  sovereigns,  who  kept  thousands  of  women  confined 
in  the  interiors  of  their  palaces,  and  to  whom  were  born 
hundreds  of  sons,  and  uncounted  numbers  of  daughters. 
But  the  most  renowned  and  remarkable  potentate,  in  this 
respect,  is  the  African  king  of  Dahomey,  who  is  by  law 
obliged  to  maintain  no  less  than  thirty-three  thousand 
three  hundred  and  thirty-three  wives !  It  is  supposed  that 
the  stability  of  the  monarchy  depends  upon  this  magical 
number,  which  is  vigilantly  kept  complete.  In  numbers, 
at  least,  this  black  patriarch  must  be  acknowledged  to 
exceed  the  Holy  Joe. 

Perhaps,  however,  the  most  striking  parallel  to  the 
career  of  the  Mormon,  in  this,  and  indeed  in  other  par- 
ticulars, is  that  of  the  Veiled  Prophet  of  Khorassan,  the 
famous  Mokanna,  whose  defeat  and  downfall  have  been 
celebrated  by  Thomas  Moore  in  his  Lalla  Rookh. 

The  poet  gives  the  following  brilliant  description  of  this 
impostor's  harem :  — 

"  Between  the  porphyry  pillars  that  uphold 
The  ricli  nioresque  work  of  the  roof  of  gold, 
Aloft  the  harem's  curtained  galleries  rise, 
Where,  through  the  silken  net-work,  glancing  eyes, 
From  time  to  time,  like  sudden  gleams  that  glow 
Through  autumn  clouds,  shine  o'er  the  pomp  below. 
What  impious  tongue,  ye  blushing  saints,  would  dare 
To  hint  that  aught  but  Heaven  hath  placed  you  there  ? 
Or  that  the  loves  of  this  light  world  could  bind 
In  their  gross  chain  your  Prophet's  soaring  mind? 
No  —  wronorful  thought  !  commissioned  from  above 
To  people  Eden's  bowers  with  shapes  of  love, 
(Creatures  so  bright,  that  the  same  lips  and  eyes 
They  wear  on  earth  will  serve  in  paradise,) 
There  to  recline  among  heaven's  native  maids, 
And  crown  th'  elect  with  bliss  that  never  fades  !  — 
Well  hath  the  Prophet-Chief  his  bidding  done  ; 
And  every  beauteous  race  beneath  the  sun, 
From  those  who  kneel  at  Bramah's  burning  founts 
To  the  fresh  nymphs  bounding  o'er  Yemen's  mounts  ; 
From  Persia's  eyes  of  full  and  fawn-like  ray, 
To  the  small,  half-shut  glances  of  Kathay  j 


220  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

And  Georgia's  bloom  and  Azab's  darker  smiles, 
And  the  gold  ringlets  of  the  western  isles  ; 
All,  all  are  there  ;  —  each  land  its  flower  hath  given 
To  form  that  fair  young  nursery  for  heaven  !  " 

I  will  now  proceed  to  describe  the  seraglio  of  the  mod- 
ern Mokanna,  the  Holy  Joseph,  who  differs  as  much  from 
his  Hebrew  namesake,  the  younger  son  of  Jacob,  in 
chastity  as  in  other  virtues. 

The  Mormon  seraglio  is  very  strictly  and  systematically 
organized.  It  forms  a  grand  lodge,  as  it  were,  and  is 
divided  into  three  distinct  orders,  or  degrees.  The  first 
and  lowest  of  these  is  styled  the  "  Cyprian  SaiJits;"  the 
second,  the  '^Chambered  Sisters  of  Charity;"  and  the 
third  and  highest  degree  is  called  the  "  Cloistered 
Saints,"  or  "  Consecratees  of  the   Cloister." 

To  give  a  clear  idea  of  the  system,  it  will  be  necessary 
to  treat  of  these  in  regular  order. 

THE    CYPRIAN    SAINTS. 

The  members  of  the  Female  Relief  Society,  who  are 
ever  upon  the  watch  for  victims,  have  the  power,  when 
they  know,  or  even  suspect,  that  any  Mormon  female  has, 
however  slightly,  lapsed  from  the  straight  path  of  virtue, 
without  the  sanction  or  knowledge  of  the  Prophet,  of  bring- 
ing her  at  once  before  the  Inquisition.  This  body  is 
solemnly  organized  in  secret  and  select  council,  and  by  its 
members,  the  poor,  terrified  female  is  questioned  and  threat- 
ened, until  she  confesses  the  crime  she  has  committed,  or 
perhaps,  in  her  confusion  and  terror,  accuses  herself  of 
what  she  was  never  guilty  of  She  is  immediately,  by  the 
council,  pronounced  a  Cyprian,  and  is  excluded  from  any 
further  connection  with  the  Relief  Society.  She  takes 
the  White  Veil,  and  her  name  and  failing  are  stealthily  pro- 
mulgated among  the  trustworthy  members  of  the  Church, 
at  whose  command  she  is,  for  licentious  purposes,  forever 
after.  Many  young  and  beautiful  females  have  thus  been 
ruined  eternally,  who,  even  after  a  single  fault,  might  have 
lived  to  redeem,  by  repentance  and  future  good  conduct, 
their  names  and  characters  from  degradation,  and  their  souls 
from  guilt  and  from  remorse.     But  the  secret  council  ol 


THE    MORMON    SERAGLIO.  221 

the  Inquisition  instantly  condemns  them,  on  the  confession 
or  proof  of  their  transgression,  to  perpetual  association 
with  a  class  devoted  to  the  most  infamous  purposes;  a 
class  set  apart  and  appropriated  to  the  gratification  of  the 
vilest  appetites  of  the  brutal  Priests  and  Elders  of  the  Mor- 
mon Church,  Was  there  ever  known,  in  the  history  of  the 
world,  a  more  diabolical  system  than  this?  Instead  of 
interposing  the  sacred  priestly  and  prophetical  character 
and  influence  for  the  salvation  and  reformation  of  an  err- 
ing sister,  to  go  deliberately  to  work,  to  sink  her  irreclaim- 
ably  into  the  pit  of  crime  and  misery  !  Do  not  the  authors 
and  abettors  of  this  horrid,  this  monstrous  system  deserve 
most  richly  the  execration  and  prompt  vengeance  of  an  out- 
raged and  indignant  community?  Should  such  miscreants 
be  longer  suffered  to  pollute,  with  their  contaminating 
presence,  a  Christian  and  civilized  land  ?  Humanity  and 
decency  loudly  demand  their  punishment,  and  the  rescue 
of  their  victims,  many  of  whom  realize  the  beautiful  de- 
scription of  the  poet  — 

"  Rich  and  rare  were  the  gems  she  wore. 
And  a  bright  gold  ring  on  her  wand  she  bore ; 
But,  O  !  her  beauty  was  far  beyond 
Her  sparkling  geras  or  snow-white  wand." 

But  even  the  means  used  to  increase  the  order  of 
Cyprian  Saints  do  not  exhaust  the  depraved  ingenuity  of 
the  Holy  Old  White  Hat  Prophet,  and  his  confidential 
counsellors.  Let  us  examine  the  second  degree  of  his 
female  lodge,  which  is  entitled 

THE    CHAMBERED    SISTERS    OF    CHARITY. 

This  order  comprises  that  class  of  females  who  indulo-e 
their  sensual  propensities,  without  restraint,  whether  mar- 
ried or  single,  by  the  express  permission  of  the  Prophet. 

Whenever  one  of  the  "Saints,"  (as  the  Mormons  style 
themselves,)  of  the  male  sex,  becomes  enamored  of  a 
female,  and  she  responds  to  the  feeling  by  a  reciprocal 
manifestation,  the  loving  brother  goes  to  Holy  Joe,  and 
states  the  case.  It  makes,  by  the  bye,  no  difference  what- 
ever if  one  or  both  the  parties  are  already  provided  with 
conjugal  helpmates.  The  Prophet  gravely  buries  his 
19* 


222  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

face  in  his  hat,  in  which  lies  his  peep-stone,  and  inquires 
of  the  Lord  what  are  his  will  and  pleasure  in  the  matter. 
Sometimes,  when  Joe  wants  the  woman  for  his  own  pur- 
poses, an  unfavorable  answer  is  given  ;  but,  generally,  the 
reply  permits  the  parties  to  follow  the  bent  of  their  inclina- 
tions, which  they  do  without  further  ceremony,  though 
with  a  strict  observance  of  secrecy,  on  account  of  the 
Gentiles,  who  have  no  right  to  the  blessings  and  privileges 
so  liberally  granted  to  the  Latter  Day  SaiiHs. 

Thus  these  poor,  deluded  females,  while  incited  by  their 
very  religion  (if  it  deserves  that  name)  to  indulgence 
in  the  most  degrading  passions,  have  their  consciences 
soothed,  and  their  scruples  appeased,  by  the  sanction  of 
the  pretended  Apostle  and  Prophet  of  the  Lord,  in  whom 
they  have  the  utmost  confidence,  and  whose  lightest  word 
is  with  them  a  law. 

The  result  of  this  system  is,  that  not  unfrequently  men 
havinor  wives  of  their  own  are  living  in  licentious  inter- 
course  with  other  women,  and  not  unfrequently  with  other 
men's  wives;  thus  multiplying  their  adulteries,  and  pro- 
ducing an  incalculable  amount  of  domestic  discord  and 
misery.  Families  are  estranged  and  separated,  children 
neglected,  and  all  the  tender  and  important  relations  of 
society  outraged  and  perverted. 

The  Chambered  Sisters  of  Charity  are  much  more  nu- 
merous than  the  Cyprian  Saints.  This  results  naturally 
from  the  greater  respectability  of  their  order.  They  are 
•'  Saints  of  the  Green  Veil,"  and  are  by  no  means  nig- 
gardly of  their  favors  to  any  of  the  faithful.  Provided  the 
Holy  Joe  does  not  desire  to  monopolize  any  of  them,  they 
are  at  the  service  of  each  and  all  of  the  Apostles,  High 
Priests,  and  Elders  of  Israel. 

It  occurs  to  me,  however,  that,  when  the  uninitiated 
portion  of  the  Mormon  Church  discover  how  their  wives 
and  daughters  are  used  by  their  rulers,  and  spiritual  guides, 
and  teachers,  there  will  be  some  slight  disturbance  of  the 
peace  in  the  Holy  City  of  Nauvoo.  I  cannot  think  it 
probable  that  Americans,  however  deluded  by  an  artful 
Impostor,  will  tamely  permit  those  dearest  to  them  to  be 
prostituted,  even  to  gratify  the  immaculate  Joe  himself 

The  third  and  hiorhest  order  of  the  Mormon  harem  is 
that  which  is  styled 


THE    MORMON    SERAGLIO.  223 


THE    CONSECRATEES    OF    THE    CLOISTER,  OR 
CLOISTERED    SAINTS. 

This  degree  is  composed  of  females,  whether  married 
or  unmarried,  who,  by  an  express  grant  and  gift  of  God, 
through  his  Prophet  the  Holy  Joe,  are  set  apart  and  con- 
secrated to  the  use  and  benefit  of  particular  individuals, 
as  secret,  spiritual  wives.  They  are  the  Saints  of  the  Black 
Veil,  and  are  accounted  the  special  favorites  of  Heaven, 
and  the  most  honorable  among  the  daughters  of  Jacob. 
Their  spiritual  husbands  are  altogether  from  the  most 
eminent  members  of  the  Mormon  Church,  and  participate 
in  the  holiness  of  their  consecrated  wives.  In  the  words 
of  the  poet,  they  can  say,  not  unaptly,  — 

"  From  the  consecrate  girl  of  my  soul  shall  I  fly 
To  seek  somewhere  else  a  more  orthodox  kiss  .' 
No  !  perish  the  hearts  and  the  lazes  that  would  try 
Truth,  valor,  or  love,  by  a  standard  like  this  !  " 

This  is  the  highest  degree  in  the  Harem,  and,  in  the 
order  of  the  Prophet's  licentious  arrangements,  is  held  as 
the  very  acme  of  perfection,  and  it  is,  indeed,  the  ne  plies 
ultra  of  depravity.  Its  ranks  are  filled  up  in  the  following 
manner :  When  an  Apostle,  High  Priest,  Elder,  or  Scribe, 
conceives  an  affection  for  a  female,  and  he  has  satisfactorily 
ascertained  that  she  experiences  a  mutual  flame,  he  com- 
municates confidentially  to  the  Prophet  his  ajfaire  clu  cceur, 
and  requests  him  to  inquire  of  the  Lord  whether  or  not  it 
would  be  right  and  proper  for  him  to  take  unto  himself  the 
said  woman  for  his  spiritual  wife.  It  is  no  obstacle  what- 
ever to  this  spiritual  marriage  if  one  or  both  of  the  parties 
should  happen  to  have  a  husband  or  wife,  already  united 
to  them  according  to  the  laws  of  the  land. 

The  Prophet  puts  this  queer  question  to  the  Lord,  and, 
if  he  receives  an  answer  in  the  affirmative,  which  is 
always  the  case  where  the  parties  are  in  favor  with  Joe,  His 
Holiness,  either  in  person  or  by  a  duly-authorized  admin- 
istrator, proceeds  to  consecrate  the  sacred  sister  in  the 
following  solemn  manner  :  — 

The  parties  assemble  in  the  lodge  room,  and  place 
themselves  kneeling  before  the  altar;  the  administrator 
commences  the  ceremony  by  saying,  — 


224  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

"  You,  separately  and  jointly,  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son 
of  God,  do  solemnly  covenant  and  agree  that  you  will  not  disclose 
any  matter  relating  to  the  sacred  act  now  in  progress  of  consumma- 
tion, whereby  any  Gentile  shall  come  to  a  knowledge  flf  the  secret 
purposes  of  this  order,  or  whereby  the  Saints  may  suffer  persecu- 
tion ;  your  lives  being  the  forfeit." 

After  the  bow  of  assent  is  given  by  each  of  the  pair,  the 
administrator  then  proceeds  — 

"  In  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  by  the  authority  of  the  holy 
priesthood,  I  now  consecrate  you  and  set  you  apart  by  the  imposi- 
tion of  my  hands,  as  husband  and  wife,  according  to  the  laws  of  Zion, 
and  the  will  of  God  our  heavenly  Father;  for  which  especial  favor 
you  now  agree  to  serve  him  with  a  perfect  heart  and  a  willing  mind, 
and  to  obey  his  Prophet  in  all  things  according  to  his  divine  will." 

Again  the  nod  of  assent  is  given  by  the  man  and  woman, 
and  the  administrator  continues  in  a  solemn  and  impres- 
sive manner  — 

"  I  nowanoint  you  with  holy,  consecrated  oil,  in  the  name  of  Jesus 
Christ,  and  by  the  authority  of  the  holy  priesthood,  that  you  may 
be  fully  and  unreservedly  consecrated  to  each  other,  and  to  the  ser- 
vice of  God,  and  that  with  affection  and  fidelity  you  may  nourish 
and  cherish  each  other,  so  long  as  you  shall  continue  faithful  and 
true  in  the  fellowship  of  the  Saints  ;  and  I  now  pronounce  upon  you 
the  blessings  of  Jacob,  whom  God  honored  and  protected  in  the  en- 
joyment of  like  special  favors;  and  may  the  peace  of  Heaven,  which 
passeth  all  understanding,  rest  upon  you  in  time  and  in  eternity  !  " 

The  parties  then  rise  and  embrace  each  other,  and  the 
robe  of  investiture  is  placed  upon  and  around  them  by  the 
administrator,  who  says, — 

"  According  to  the  prototype,  I  now  pronounce  you  orte,  flesh,  in 
the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost. 
Amen." 

The  robe  is  then  removed,  and  the  parties  leave  the 
cloister,  with  generally  a  firm  belief,  at  least  on  the  part 
of  the  female,  in  the  sacredness  and  validity  of  the  cere- 
monial, and  thereafter  consider  themselves  as  united  in 
spiritual  marriage,  the  duties  and  privileges  of  which  are 
in  no  particular  different  from  those  of  any  other  marriage 
covenant. 

"  Here  we  dwell  in  holiest  bowers. 

Where  angels  of  light  o'er  our  orisons  bend. 
Where  sighs  of  devotion  and  breathings  of  flowers 
To  heaven  in  mingled  odors  ascend ! 
Do  not  disturb  our  calm,  O  Love  ! 
So  like  is  thy  form  to  the  cherubs  above, 
It  well  might  deceive  such  hearts  as  ours.' ' 


THK    MORMON    SERAGLIO.  225 

The  above  is  a  faithful  and  unexaggerated  account  of 
the  most  enormous  and  detestable  system  of  depravity 
that  vi^as  ever  concocted  by  the  corrupt  heart  of  a  human 
being.  The  extensive  scale  upon  which  it  was  carried  on, 
and  the  lofty  and  sacred  character  pretended  to  by  the 
arch  villain  who  contrived  and  perpetrated  it,  are  equally 
remarkable.  Is  it  not  astonishing  that  a  man  professing 
to  be  the  Apostle  and  Prophet  of  the  Most  High  and  Pure 
God,  and  the  founder  of  a  new  and  holy  religion,  based,  in 
some  degree,  upon  the  Christian  Scriptures,  —  a  man  claim- 
ing daily  and  hourly  familiar  intercourse  with  the  Creator 
of  heaven  and  earth,  should,  despite  these  high  pretensions, 
which,  however  false,  ought  to  have  made  him  endeavor 
to  act  in  some  degree  of  accordance  with  them, — is  it  not 
astonishing,  I  say,  that  this  man  should  so  deliberately 
and  shamelessly  have  gone  to  work  to  gratify,  in  so  mon- 
strous a  manner,  his  abominable  lusts?  Will  it  not  here- 
after be  deemed  incredible  that  hundreds  and  thousands, 
yea,  tens  of  thousands,  of  Americans  and  Christians,  were, 
in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and 
forty-two,  so  miserably,  so  awfully  deceived  as  to  believe 
that  this  monster  of  iniquity,  this  brutally  sensual  wretch, 
was  the  Prophet  and  Vicegerent  of  God  upon  earth  ? 

And  will  it  not  be  deemed  still  more  incredible,  that 
chaste  and  pious  women  should  also  be  so  far  deluded  by 
his  arts  and  impostures,  as  to  sacrifice  themselves,  body  and 
soul,  to  him  and  to  his  myrmidons,  despite  all  restraints  of 
their  former  religious  education,  and  of  that  decency  and 
modesty  which  seem  inherent  qualities  of  the  female  soul  ? 

But  there  is  no  absurdity  so  great  that  it  will  not  be 
believed,  no  tiuormity  so  monstrous  that  it  will  not  be 
practised,  by  those  who  have  once  yielded  up  their  minds 
to  the  sway  of  superstition.  The  imposture  of  Joseph 
Smith  has  never  had  its  parallel,  if  we  consider  not  only 
its  magnitude  and  grossness,  but  the  age  and  the  people 
when  and  among  whom  it  was  devised  and  promulgated. 

In  quitting  this  subject,  I  can  only  say  that  I  have  not 
told  the  tenth  part  of  the  Prophet's  licentiousness.  Numer- 
ous scenes  and  incidents  could  not,  of  course,  be  related, 
because  of  their  obscene  and  disgusting  nature,  and  be- 
cause they  involve  the  names  and  future  reputation  of  his 
victims. 


226  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 


AMOURS,   ATTEMPTED    SEDUCTIONS,   AND 
CRIM.  CON.  CASES. 

Under  this  head  I  shall  arrange  two  descriptions  of 
cases  ;  —  the  amours  and  attempted  seductiojis,  as  in  the 
cases  of  JMrs.  Sarah  M.  Pratt,  Mrs.  Emeline  White,  Miss 
Martha  H.  Brotherton,  and  Miss  Nancy  Rigdon,  where 
the  Prince  of  tiie  Seraglio  was  signally  defeated ;  and  the 
amours  and  crim.  con.  cases,  as  in  the  instances  of  Mrs. 
Warren,  (late  widow  Fuller,)  Mrs.  Miller,  and  the  long 
retinue  of  Cyprians,  Chambered,  and  Cloistered  Saints, 
where  the  Lord  of  the  Harem  glutted  his  brutal  lusts  to 
the  maximum  of  his  sensual  desires,  in  his  halcyon  days  of 
prophetic  glory. 

AMOURS   AND   ATTEMPTED  SEDUCTIONS. 
MRS.   SAR.\H   M.   PRATT. 

This  lady  is  the  wife  of  Orson  Pratt,  A.  M.,  Professor 
of  Mathematics  in  the  University  of  the  City  of  Nauvoo, 
and  is  one  of  the  most  elegant,  graceful,  amiable,  and  ac- 
complished women  in  the  place.  Mr.  S.  Francis,  editor 
of  the  Sangamo  Journal,  in  speaking  of  her,  says,  "  It 
will  be  recollected  that  Mrs.  Schindle,  in  her  affidavit  de- 
tailing the  attempt  of  Smith  upon  her,  said,  '  He  then  told 
her  that  she  must  never  tell  of  his  propositions  to  her,  for 
he  had  all  influence  in  that  place,  and  if  she  told,  he 
%coiild  ruin  her  character,  and  she  rcould  he  under  the  ne- 
cessity of  leaving  J  This  same  scheme  hfis«been  carried 
out  in  reference  to  Mrs.  Pratt.  She  '  told '  on  the  Impos- 
tor, and  was  marked  by  him  for  destruction.  In  a  public 
speech  in  Nauvoo,  on  the  14th  July,  Joe  spoke  of  this 
lady  —  a  woman  whose  reputation  had  been  as  fair  as  vir- 
tue could  make  it  until  she  came  in  contact  with  him  — 
in  a  manner  only  befitting  the  lowest  and  most  degraded 
vagabond  in  existence."  Yes,  her  reputation  was  unsal- 
lied,  and  her  character  as  pure  as  the  virgin  snow;  nor 
was  even  the  Mormon  Don  Juan  able  to  blight  this  bloom- 
ing flower.  —  This  noble  and  lovely  woman  was  marked 
out  by  Joe  as  a  victim.     Her  husband  was  sent  to  Europe 


AMOURS  AND  ATTEMPTED  SEDUCTIONS.     227 

to  convert  the  lieaihen,  under  a  solemn  promise  that  his 
family  should  be  honorably  provided  for  by  the  Church ; 
but,  as  Mrs.  Pratt  was  a  beautiful  and  charming  woman, 
Joe's  real  object  was  to  convert  her  in  another  way  — 
from  virtue,  unsophisticated  virtue,  to  vice,  soul-damning 
vice,  —  from  the  path  of  innocence  and  peace,  to  the  pol- 
luted way  of  the  libertine,  —  from  the  pure  teachings  of 
heaven's  high  King,  to  the  loathsome  caresses  of  the  beast 
and  the  false  prophet ;  but  the  fowler's  snare  was  broken, 
and  the  intended  victim  saved.  Mrs.  Pratt  is  a  highly- 
educated  lady,  and  had  always  been  used  to  living  well ; 
but  no  sooner  had  her  husband  crossed  the  ocean,  than 
Joe  ordered  the  Bishops  to  restrict  her  in  her  allowance, 
and  reduce  her  to  a  state  of  absolute  want  and  suffering,  in 
order  to  make  her  a  more  easy  prey.  The  mandate  was 
obeyed,  and,  in  drear  winter,  without  fuel  or  food,  she 
found  herself  in  a  miserable  hovel,  with  her  darling  child, 
exposed  to  storm  and  tempest,  and  dependent  upon  the 
tender  mercies  of  a  cold  and  unfeeling  fraternity  to  sup- 
ply her  actual  wants!  !  !  The  sufferings  and  privations 
through  which  she  passed  are  indescribable ;  the  blackest 
fiends  of  hell  would  shudder  at  the  thought  of  such  inhu- 
man treatment;  but,  alas!  she  drank  the  bitter  cup,  and 
sipped  the  dregs.  A  public  contribution  was  then  taken 
up  for  her,  an(i  pocketed  by  the  Bishop  ;  but  the  venerable 
prelate,  Vinson  Knight,  was  willing  to  see  her  provided 
for  on  one  condition,  and  that  was,  the  sacrifice  of  virtue! 
But  she  spurned  his  proffered  mercies,  and  doffed  the 
mitre  from  his  reverend  brow.  Joe  Smith  and  Vinson 
Knight — par  fratrum  nobile  !  Emma,  the  Electa  Si/ria 
of  the  Church,  and  wife  of  the  Holy  Joe,  the  male  Cas- 
sandra of  the  Mormon  Hierarchy,  (who  was  very  envious 
of  Mrs.  Pratt's  superior  intellectual  endowments,)  advised 
her  to  hire  out  as  a  servant  to  some  Mormon  nabob  ;  but 
that  base  attempt  at  human  degradation  of  one  in  every 
way  superior  to  herself,  became  abortive ;  and  Mrs.  Pratt 
turned  from  the  delectable  Emma,  the  Lady  Abbess  of  the 
Seraglio,  or  "  Mother  of  the  Maids,"  as  Lord  Byron  calls 
it,  with  loathing  and  ineffable  contempt.  Mrs.  Pratt, 
however,  by  the  assistance  of  a  few  humane  individuals, 
and  her  persevering  industry,  was  enabled  to  support  her- 


228  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

self  and  little  boy,  until  the  return  of  her  husband  from  a 
two  years'  mission,  which  was  greeted  with  acclamations 
of  joy.  The  cup  of  sorrow  was  broken,  and  she  rejoiced 
once  more  in  the  society  of  vl  protector,  a  husband,  and  a 
friend.     But  she  had  a  dreadful  tale  to  tell. 

Joe  Smith  told  me,  confidentially,  during  the  absence 
of  her  husband,  that  he  intended  to  make  Mrs.  Pratt 
one  of  his  spiritual  tvives,  one  of  the  Cloistered  Saints, 
for  the  Lord  had  given  her  to  him  as  a  special  favor 
for  his  faithfulness  and  zeal ;  and,  as  I  had  influence  with 
her,  he  desired  me  to  assist  him  in  the  consummation  of 
his  hellish  purposes;  but  I  refused  compliance,  and  told 
him  that  she  had  been  much  neglected  and  abused  by  the 
Church,  in  order  to  cloister  her,  so  far  without  success, 
and  that,  if  the  Lord  had  given  her  to  him,  he  must  attend 
to  it  himself,  for  I  should  never  offer  her  an  indignity. 
"Well,"  said  he,  "  I  shall  approach  her,  for  there  is  no 
harm  in  it  if  she  submits  to  be  cloistered,  and  if  her  hus- 
band should  never  find  it  out ;  and  if  she  should  expose 
me,  as  she  did  Bishop  Knight,  I  will  blast  her  character; 
so  there  is  no  material  risk  for  so  desirable  a  person."  I 
then  called  upon  Mrs.  Pratt,  and  apprized  her  of  Joe's 
contemplated  attack  on  her  virtue,  in  the  name  of  the 
Lord,  and  that  she  must  prepare  to  repulse  him,  in  so 
infamous  an  assault,  by  opposing  revelation  to  revelation. 
She  replied,  "Joseph  cannot  be  such  a  man;  I  cannot 
believe  it  until  I  know  it  for  myself,  or  have  it  from  his 
own  lips  ;  he  cannot  be  so  corrupt."  I  told  her  that  she 
would  see,  unless  he  changed  his  mind,  for  he  was  an  un- 
principled libertine,  unequalled  in  the  history  of  civilized 
man.  Accordingly,  in  a  few  days,  Joe  proposed  to  me  a 
visit  to  Ramus,  which  I  accepted,  and  we  started  from  his 
house,  in  an  open  carriage,  about  4  o'clock,  P.  M.,  rode 
into  the  prairie  a  few  miles,  and  returned  to  the  house  of 
Captain  John  T.  Barnett,  in  Nauvoo,  about  dusk,  where 
we  put  up  the  horse,  with  Barnett's  permission.  Joe  pre- 
tended we  were  looking  for  thieves.  After  perambulating 
for  an  hour  or  two,  we  proceeded  to  the  residence  of  Mrs. 
Pratt,  and  found  her  at  home,  and  alone,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  her  little  boy,  who  was  then  asleep  in  bed.  We 
were  hospitably  received,  and  our  situation  rendered  as 


AMOURS    AND    ATTEMPTED    SEDUCTIONS.  2r29 

comfortable  and  agreeable  as  the  tenement  would  admit 
of.  After  considerable  desultory  conversation,  Joe  asked 
her  if  she  would  keep  a  secret  for  him  ;  to  which  she  as- 
sented, 'i  Do  you  pledge  me  your  honor,"  said  he,  "  that 
you  will  never  tell  without  my  permission  ?  "  She  replied 
in  the  affirmative.  He  then  continued,  "  Sister  Pratt,  the 
Lord  has  given  you  to  me  as  one  of  my  spiritual  wives.  I 
have  the  blessings  of  Jacob  granted  me,  as  God  granted 
holy  men  of  old  ;  and  as  I  have  long  looked  upon  you 
with  favor,  and  an  earnest  desire  of  connubial  bliss,  I  liope 
you  will  not  repulse  or  deny  me."  She  replied,  "  And  is 
that  the  great  secret  that  I  am  not  to  utter  ?  Am  I  called 
upon  to  break  the  marriage  covenant,  and  prove  recreant 
to  my  lawful  husband  ?  /  never  will.  My  sex  shall  not 
be  disgraced,  nor  my  honor  sullied.  I  care  not  for  the 
blessings  of  Jacob,  and  I  believe  in  no  such  revelations, 
neitlier  will  I  consent,  under  any  circumstances  whatever. 
I  have  one  good  husband,  and  that  is  enough  for  me." 
He  tlien  went  off  to  see  Miss  Louisa  Beeman,  at  the 
house  of  Mrs.  Sherman,  and  remained  with  her  about  two 
hours,  when  we  returned  to  Barnett's,  harnessed  our 
horse,  started  for  Ranuis,  arrived  at  Carthage  early  in  the 
morning,  and  took  breakfast  at  Mr.  Hamilton's.  We 
then  went  to  Ramus,  transacted  some  business  in  relation 
to  real  estate,  returned  to  Carthage  that  night,  and  put  up 
at  the  house  of  Esquire  Comer.  Next  day,  we  returned 
to  Nauvoo.  I  then  called  upon  Mrs.  Pratt,  and  asked  her 
if  her  opinion  of  Joseph,  the  Prophet,  was  the  same  as 
heretofore.  She  replied,  "  No  ;  he  is  a  bad  man,  beyond 
a  doubt  —  'wicked,  sensual,  devilish;'  but  it  will  not  do 
for  me  to  express  myself  openly,  or  my  life  might  atone 
for  it.  It  becomes  me  to  move  in  this  matter  with  much 
circumspection  ;  I  must  be  as  '  wise  as  a  serpent,  and 
harmless  as  a  dove  ; '  for  I  see  plainly  that  Joseph  is  de- 
termined to  transgress  the  laws,  change  the  ordinance, 
and  break  the  everlasting  covenant  of  our  heavenly  Father, 
and  to  set  at  open  defiance  every  principle  of  true  godliness 
and  moral  rectitude.  I  exceedingly  fear  and  tremble  for 
the  weak  and  uneducated  of  my  sex ;  for  an  unprincipled 
libertine,  sensualist,  and  debauchee,  of  such  unbounded 
prophetic  influence,  in  a  community  like  this,  may  utterly 
20 


230  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

ruin  hundreds  of  pious,  unsuspecting  females,  under  the 
potent  dictum  of  a  'Thus  saith  the  Lord;'   and  all  the 
proof  they  would  require  would  be  his  simple  //;>e  (lixit. 
O,  W}iAT  TOTAL  DEPRAVITY  !  !     What  iguorance  and  im- 
pudence in  a  land  of  Bibles,  where  Christians  ought  to 
dwell,  and  worship  the  Great  Ruler  of  the  Universe  in  the 
beauty  of  holiness  !     Surely  God  will  not  suffer  it  long  ! 
I  remember  well  when  you  told  me  of  his  desiring  you  tp 
procure  the  engraving  of  new  plates  of  the  Book  of  Mor- 
mon,   for   the   further   and   more  perfect   blinding  of  the 
people  —  of  his   gross   wickedness    and    perfidy  —  of  his 
fraud  and  corruption  —  of  his  spiritual  wickedness  in  high 
places,  and  his  secret  abominations,  —  and  so  forth  ;   but  I 
could  never  realize  it  before.     I  had   a  better  opinion  of 
human   nature ;  but,  alas  !  I  was  deceived.      The  scales, 
however,    have    fallen    from    my    eyes,   and    '  lohcreas    I 
was  once  blind,  now  I  see.'      I  am  in  great  trouble  on 
another  account.     My  husband  is  a  good  and  pious  n)an, 
and  a  true  believer  in  Blormonism,  devotedly  attached  to 
Joseph  as  the  spiritual  leader  of  the  Ciiurch.     He  believes 
him  to  be  a  pure  man,  and  a  ^^rophet  of  the  Lord.     Now, 
if  I  should  tell  him  the  true  story  of  my  sufferings,  priva- 
tions, and  insults,  and  Joseph  should  circumvent  or  meet 
it  with  his  infcdliblc  rebuff  o{  a  'Verily,  thls  saith  the 
Lord,'  I  fear  that  Orson  would  believe  him  in  preference 
to  me,  mdrss  his  faith  can  be  shaken.     How  shall  I  extri- 
cate myself  from  this  fearful  dilemma?     As  a  confidential 
friend,  I  look  to  you  for  advice  and  protection,  until  the 
return  of  Mr.  Pratt."     "  Be  quiet,"  said  I,  "  Sarah,  under 
these  circumstances,  until  some  event  transpires  by  which 
Orson  can  have  ocular  and  auricular  demon.stration  of  the 
palpable   imposture  of  the  whole  scheme  of  Mormonism, 
and  of  the  infidelity  and  brutality  of  the  Mormon  Mounte- 
bank, that  Svi  Generis  Prophet,  who  was  constituted  per 
se,   and  not  bij  the  appointment  of  Almighty  God  ;    and 
such   an   event  mu.st  soon  be  consummated,  unless  there 
should  be  a  manifest    change  in  the    Mormon   Adminis- 
tration." 

Joe  afterwards  tried  to  convince  Mrs.  Pratt  of  the  pro- 
priety of  his  spiritual  wife  doctrine,  and  she  at  last  told 
him  peremptorily,  "  Joseph,  if  you  ever  attempt  any  thing 


AMOLTRS    AND    ATTEMPTED    SEDUCTIONS.  231 

of  the  kind  with  me  again,  I  will  make  a  full  disclosure  to 
Mr.  Pratt  on  his  return  home.  Depend  upon  it,  I  will 
^certainlij  do  it."  Joe  replied,  "  Sister  Pratt,  I  hope  you 
will  not  expose  me,  for  if  I  suffer,  all  must  suffer;  so  do 
not  expose  me.  Will  you  promise  me  that  you  will  not  do 
it  ?"  "  If,"  said  she,  "  you  will  never  insult  me  again,  I 
will  not  expose  you,  unless  strong  circumstances  should 
require  it."  "  If  you  should  tell,"  said  he,  "I  will  ruin 
your  reputation  ;  remember  that ;  and  as  you  have  repulsed 
me,  it  becomes  sin,  unless  sacrijice  is  offered."  He  then 
desired  that  a  lamb  should  be  procured  and  slain,  and  the 
door-posts  and  the  gate  sprinkled  with  its  blood,  and  the 
kidneys  and  entrails  taken  and  offered  upon  an  altar  of 
twelve  stones  that  had  not  been  touched  with  a  hammer, 
as  a  burnt  sin-offering,  for  the  purpose  of  saving  him  and 
his  priesthood.  His  desire  was  complied  with,  and  the 
lamb  procured  from  Captain  Barnett,  and  slain  by  Lieu- 
tenant Stephen  H.  Goddard  ;  and  the  kidneys  and  entrails 
were  offered  in  sacrifice,  as  Joe  desired  ;  and  he  observed, 
"  All  is  now  safe ;  the  Destroying  Angel  will  pass  over 
without  harming  any  of  us."  About  this  time,  Mrs.  Pratt, 
in  a  conversation  with  Mrs.  Goddard,  observed,  "  Sister 
Goddard,  Joseph  is  a  corrupt  man  ;  I  know  it,  for  he  made 
an  attempt  upon  me,  in  the  name  of  the  Lord.  I  now 
detest  the  man."  Time  passed  on  without  further  moles- 
tation, until  one  day,  after  Mr.  Pratt's  return  from  Europe, 
Joe  called  at  her  new  house,  and,  looking  at  Mrs.  Pratt, 
thought,  — 

"  And,  O  !  how  often  in  these  eyes, 
Which  melting  beamed  like  azure  skies 

In  dewy  vernal  weather  — 
How  often  have  I  raptured  read 
The  burning  glance,  that  silent  said, 

Now,  love,  we  Jed  together,"  — 

and  grossly  insulted  her  again,  by  stealthily  approaching 
and  kissing  her.  This  highly  offended  her,  and  she  told  her 
husband,  Colonel  Orson  Pratt,  who  was  highly  incensed, 
and  gave  Joe  a  severe  rebuke.  Joe  observed,  "  I  did 
not  desire  to  kiss  her  ;  Bennett  made  me  do  it !  "  Joe 
couldn't  come  the  "extreme  unction"  over  that  intelligent 
lady ;  she  was  far  above  his  polluted  breath,  his  ribaldry, 


232  HISTORY    OP    THE     SAINTS.  ' 

low  vituperation,  calumny,  and  detraction.     lie  lied  to  her  \ 

in  the  name   of  Israel's    God.     Let  the  base  blasphemer  j 

remember  that,  and  weep  !    Let  him  look  at  his  black  cat-'  ; 
alogue  of  crimes  —  his  seductions  and  attempted  seduc- 

lions,  in  the  name  of  the  Lord — his  thefts  —  his  robberies  ; 

—  and  his  murders  !     Why,  Satan  blushes  to  behold  so  ' 
corrupt  and  loathsome  a  mortal,  — one  whose  daring  deeds 

of  crime  so  far  surpass  hell's  darkest  counsels,  as  to  hide  ; 

the  sable  Prince  in  impenetrable  darkness  forever  !     If  Joe  j 

Smith  is  not  destined  for  the  Devil,  all  I  can  say  is,  that  ' 

the  duties  of  a  devil  have  not  been  clearly  understood.  ; 

"  I've  had  a  dream  that  bodes  no  good 

Unto  the  Holy  Brotherhood.  i 

I  can't  be  wrong,  and  I  confess —  : 

As  far  as  it  is  right  or  lawful  1 

For  one,  no  conjurer,  to  guess —  i 

It  seems  to  me  extremely  awful."  J 

Joe  lied  to  Colonel  Pratt  afterwards,  in  the  name  op 
THE  Lord.     This  shook  his  faith,  and  he  told  the  Prophet 
to  his  face  that  he  was  a  liar,    an  infamous  liar;  and 
his  noble  voice  has  since  been  heard  thundering  against  that 
Uncircumcised  Philistine,  the  fell  Monster  of  Iniquity,  and      | 
that  at  the  very  portals  of  the  Temple.     Dephoy  column. 
Colonel  Pratt,  and  let  your  heavy  ordnance  and  battering- 
rams  ply  upon   the   ramparts   of  General    Joe's    imperial 
fortifications!    Demolish  the  bastions  and  curtains  of  his      ' 
fortresses  !  Open  your  artillery  upon  his  concealed  recesses, 
and  storm  his  strong-holds  !  Let  loose  the  dogs  of  war  upon      : 
his  gathering  hosts  of  Tartarean  fugitives  and  refugees,  and      i 
secure  to  yourself  an  imperishabJe  reputation  as  a  moral 
victor,  and  a  servant  of  your  God  ;   and  Mormonism  will 
soon  be  numbered  with  the  things  that  were,  the  glory  of      j 
which  is  now  in  the  sear  and  yellow  leaf.  ,     j 


IVom  Mrs.  Emeline  White. 

,.  „  T  r^     r.  "  ^^*i'*'oo.  -^iigust  3,  1842. 

"Generai,  John  C.  BenxVett  : 

"  Respected  friend, — 

"Your  friends  are  anxiously   awaiting  your  return  to  the  west. 
If  it  is  possible,  be  here  by  the  1st  of  September.     You  can  avert 


AMOURS  AND  ATTEMPTED  SEDUCTIONS.      233 

a  great  calamity,  and  add  greatly  to  the  amount  of  human  hap- 
piness by  so  doing.  I  dare  not  write  you  to  what  I  allude,  but 
would  gladly  tell  you.  I  called  on  Mrs.  Fratt  this  morning,  in  order 
to  learn  where  to  address  you;  and  she  and  Mr.  Pratt" dined  at 
father's  to-day.  We  had  a  long  talk  with  them  about  the  troubled 
waters,  the  present  attitude  in  which  they  are  placed,  and  the  ulti- 
mate issue  or  final  result  of  the  czpusi.  I  was  much  pleased  to  see 
them  so  happy,  and  firm  in  the  advocacy  of  truth.  Mr.  Pratt  has 
publicly  defended  her,  from  the  stand,  against  the  foul  aspersions 
attempted  to  be  cast  upon  her  irreproachable  reputation  by  her  in- 
terested persecutors.  She  is  certainly  one  of  the  best  of  women, 
above  reproach,  of  noble  bearing,  and' great  moral  excellence;  and 
Mr.  Pratt  will  ever  sustain  her  in  exposing  corruption  and  fraud. 
Tliey  request  me  to  say  to  you  that  you  nmst  excuse  them  for  not 
writing,  as  their  time  has  hitherto  been  so  completely  engrossed. 
They  are  your  unwavering  friends,  and  cannot  be  driven  from  the 
truth  by  your  enemies.  Some  here  have  dealt  very  treacherously 
with  you,  and  they  shall  reap  their  reward  hereafter;  the  curses  of 
Heaven  will  fall  upon  their  heads,  for  God  will  protect  you  in  a  virtu- 
ous cause.  May  all  your  undertakings  prosper,  and  may  God  bless, 
and  guardian  angels  watch  over  and  hover  around  you,  in  this  your 
time  of  danger  and  peril  !  Your  friends  here  are  firm  as  the  adaman- 
tine rocks,  and  will  ever  sustain  you  in  defending  virtue  and  expos- 
ing vice.  Father  and  mother  join  me  in  their  respects  to  you. 
Please  to  write  circumstantially  at  your  earliest  convenience 

"  Respectfully,  yours, 

"Emeline  White." 


The  following  affidavit  of  Me.ssrs.  Carter,  Whiting,  and 
Leland,  though  unexpected  by  me,  is  quite  opportune:  — 

"  Boston,  September  17,  1842. 
"To  THE  Public  : 

"  Without  solicitation  or  the  previous  knowledge  of  any  one, 
we  would  respectfully  state  that  we  liave  seen  letters  from  four 
individuals,  residing  in  and  near  Nauvoo,  addressed  to  and  received 
by  ditferent  gentlemen  in  the  States  of  New  York  and  Massachu- 
setts, through  the  post-office  department,  tending  fully  and  unequiv- 
ocally to  confirm  the  truth  of  the  disclosures  of  General  Bennett,  in 
relation  to  Joseph  Smith,  the  Mormon  Prophet,  and  his  followers, 
especially  so  far  as  regards  the  Seraglio  and  Order  Lodge,  and  the 
cases  of  Mrs.  Sarah  M.  Pratt,  Miss  Nancy  Rigdon,  and  Mrs.  Erne- 
line  White.  The  writers  of  these  letters  are  persons  of  great  respect- 
ability, holding  high  official  stations.  They  request  that  their  names 
shall  not  be  made  public,  for  fear  of  secret  murder  by  the  Mormon 
Destroying  Angel,  or  the  Daughter  of  Zion. 


20 


"Robert  Carter, 

"  WiLLARD  J.  Whiting, 

"  Emerson  Leland." 


234  HISTOKY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

"  Suffolk,  ss.     September  17,  1842. 

"  Then  personally  appeared  the  above-named  Robert  Carter, 
Willard  J.  Whiting,  and  Emerson  Leland,  and  made  oath  that  the 
above  affidavit,  by  them  subscribed,  is  true.  * 

"  Before  me,  Bradford  Sumnek, 

"  Justice  of  the  Peace." 


The  Sangamo  Journal,  of  July  22,  1842,  in  commenting 
on  the  Prophet's  amours  and  secret  abominations,  says,  — 

"  In  this  community,  we  verily  believe  that  tliere  is  not  a  man, 
disconnected  with  the  Mormons,  who  does  not  place  implicit  confi- 
dence in  the  disclosures  of  General  Bennett.  These  disclosures 
show  that  the  rulers  of  this  Mormon  confederacy  are  steeped  in  pol- 
lutions of  the  blackest  dye  —  pollutions  and  crimes  violatory  of  all 
laws,  human  and  divine  —  and  for  which  we  can  hardly  find  a  parallel, 
without  going  back  to  the  ingulfed  'cities  of  the  plain.'  " 

It  will  be  seen  that  the  affidavit  of  Messrs.  Carter, 
Whiting,  and  Leland,  unequivocally  sustains  various  other 
matters  disclosed  in  this  Expose ;  and  the  whole  testi- 
mony places  Mrs.  Pratt  high  on  the  vantage-ground,  and 
far  above  reproach.  Thus,  by  the  assistance  of  a  most  pow- 
erful intellect,  and  the  great  God,  has  this  noble  lady  signally 
triumphed  over  her  insidiously  persecuting  enemies,  and 
placed  her  foot  upon  the  neck  of  the  Monster  of  Iniquity, 
the  Beast  and  the  False  Prophet ;  and  her  noble  husband, 
too,  has  done  himself  immortal  honor  in  battering  down 
the  bulwarks  of  prophetic  security,  behind  which  the  Mor- 
mon Pontiff  screened  himself  from  merited  infctmy  and  dis- 
grace. The  course  of  the  Prophet  has  been  very  singular 
in  its  inception,  its  prosecution,  and  its  termination. 


MRS.    EMELINE    WHITE. 

Mrs.  White  is  no  Mormon.  Her  father,  General  Davi- 
son Hibard,  resided  at  Nauvoo  before  the  Mormons  located 
themselves  there.  She  is,  however,  what  is  much  better, 
one  of  the  most  beautiful  and  accomplished  women  in  the 
Holy  City.  Her  form  is  noble,  yet  exquisitely  propor- 
tioned ;  her  features  regular,  and  glowing  with  a  thousand 
charms,  not  the  least  attractive  of  which  is  the  amiable 
gayety  that  beams  from  every  line  of  her  countenance. 
She  possesses  fine  musical  talent,  and  realizes,  in  every 
way,  the  description  of  the  poet, — 


AMOURS  AND  ATTEMPTED  SEDUCTIONS.      235 

"  She  sung  of  love  —  while  o'er  her  lyre 

The  rosy  rays  of  evening  fell, 
As  if  to  feed  with  their  soft  fire 

The  soul  within  that  trembling  shell. 
The  same  rich  light  hung  o'er  her  cheek, 

And  played  around  those  lips  that  sung 
And  spoke  as  flowers  v.'ould  sing  and  speak, 

If  love  could  lend  their  leaves  a  tongue." 

The  fine  intellect  and  superior  intelligence  of  this  lovely 
woman  secured  her  effectually  from  falling  into  the  Mor- 
mon delusion.  She  rejected,  with  decision  and  contempt, 
their  base  and  absurd  belief;  and,  so  far  as  I  am  aware, 
rose  triumphant  above  the  libertine  arts  and  temptations 
of  the  Prophet  himself,  though  tliose  arts  and  those  tempta- 
tions were  put  forth  with  all  his  strength. 

The  following  letter  was  addressed  to  her  by  Joe,  who 
was,  when  he  wrote  it,  in  Springfield,  Illinois  :  — 
"My  Sweet  Emeline: 

"You  know  that  my  love  for  you,  as  David  said  to 
Jonathan,  is  'wonderful,  passing  the  love  of  women.'  And  jiow 
can  that  be  ?  You  know  it  is  only  figurative.  I  mean  you  have  my 
most  supreme  affections.  O  that  I  had  yours  as  truly  !  May  I  not 
hope  that  it  will  be  so?  At  all  events,  be  my  friend,  my  best  friend. 
If  you  want  any  thing  while  I  am  gone,  call  upon  either  of  the 
Bishops,  —  Vinson  Knight  or  Alanson  Ripley,  —  and  show  them  the 
signature  of 'Old  White  Hat,'  and  they  will  provide  for  j'ou.  Do 
not  be  afraid  to  receive  any  thing  from  me,  and  these  men  are  con- 
fidential. You  need  not  fear  to  write  me  ;  and  I  do  assure  you  that 
a  few  lines  would  be  very  consoling  on  a  journey.  Sign  it  '  Ro- 
sanna.'  "  Your  humble  servant, 

"  Old  White  Hat." 

This  letter  had  no  other  effect  upon  this  vis^uous  lady, 
than  to  excite  her  scorn  and  indignation.  She  saw  throucrh 
the  Monster  and  his  detestable  dpctrines,  and  cmild  not 
be  persuaded,  by  any  offers,  to  participate  in  his  vileness. 

I  am  informed  by  General  Robinson  and  Colonel  Hig- 
bee,  that  the  brother  of  Dr.  John  F.  Weld  has  in  his  pos- 
session two  other  letters  from  this  Old  White  Hat  Prophet 
to  Mrs.  White,  which  are  said  to  be  exceedingly  rich 
specimens  of  rigmarole,  abounding  in  the  warmest  protes- 
tations of  love,  interlarded  with  quotations  from  Scripture. 

The  Mormon  Don  Juan  failed  again  in  the  application 
of  the  '^extreme  unction,"  and  virtue  once  more  triumphed 
over  the  insidious  arts  and  machinations  of  a  malevolent 


236  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

caliph.  The  unbounded  coura£;e  and  inflexible  moral  purity 
of  purpose  of  this  beautiful  lady,  combined  with  a  vigorous 
intellect,  enabled  her  to  hold  the  tyrant  at  bay,  even  in  the 
Holy  City  of  the  Saints,  until  she  could  effectually  present 
the  shield  and  7-apier.  This  she  did,  and  vanquished.  No- 
ble woman  !  may  the  escutcheon  of  her  honor  ever  remain 
as  spotless  as  the  album  of  Diana,  and  the  God  of  virtue 
will  be  her  Protector  and  her  Friend. 


MISS    MARTHA    1!.    BROTHERTON. 

Miss  Brotherton  is  a  very  good-looking,  amiable,  and 
accomplished  English  lady,  of  highly  respectable  parent- 
age, cultivated  intellect,  and  spotless  moral  character. 
She  was  selected  as  one  of  the  victims  for  the  Cloister,  in 
order  to  be  consecrated  to  apostolic  brutality.  The  Right 
Reverend  Brigham  Young,  the  President  of  the  Mormon 
College  of  Apostles,  {Collcginm  ele  Propaganda  Fide,)  it 
is  well  known  regarded  her  with  an  evil  eye,  and  she  was 
also  eagerly  sought  after  by  the  Holy  Prophet  Joe,  and  by 
Apostle  Ileber  C.  Kimball.  Gods !  what  a  triumvirate  ! 
and  united,  too,  for  such  a  sanctified  purpose  !  These 
celestial  gladiators,  armed  with  the  "sword  of  the  Spirit," 
leaguing  themselves  in  a  Holy  Alliance  for  the  destruction 
of  a  defenceless  and  innocent  woman,  and  urging  on  their 
work  of  sin  and  pollution  with  the  most  fiendish  zeal  and 
malignity  !  "  Tell  it  not  in  Gath,  publish  it  not  in  the 
streets  of  Askclon."  These  three  Mormon  demigods, 
these  Prophets  and  Apostles,  were  completely  foiled  in  their 
hopeful  scheme,  and  utterly  defeated  by  the  determined 
resistance  of  their  intended  victim,  as  will  be  seen  by  the 
following  graphic  letter  from  her  own  pen  :  — 

"  St.  Loris,  Missouri,  July  13,  A.  D.  1842. 
"  Geskral  John  C.  Bennktt  : 
"Dear  Sir,— 

"  I  left  Warsaw  a  short  time  since  for  this  city,  and  having 
been  called  upon  by  you,  through  the  '  Sanganio  Journal,'  to  come 
out  and  disclose  to  the  vi^orld  the  facts  of  the  case  in  relation  to 
certain  propositions  made  to  me  at  Nauvoo,  by  some  of  tlie  Mormon 
leaders,  I  now  proceed  to  respond  to  the  call,  and  discliarge  what  I 
consider  to  be  a  duty  devolving  upon  me  as  an  innocent,  but  insulted 
and  abused  female.     I  had  been  at  Nauvoa  near  three  weeks,  during 


AMOURS  AND  ATTEMPTED  SEDUCTIONS.      237 

which  time  my  father's  family  received  frequent  visits  from  Elders 
Bricrhain  Youn^  and  Heber  C.  Kimball,  two  of  the  Mormon  Apos- 
tles ;  when,  early  one  morning,  they  both  came  to  my  brother-in-law's 
(John  Mclhvrick's)  liouse,  at  v\^hich  place  I  then  was  on  a  visit,  and 
particularly  requested  me  to  go  and  spend  a  few  days  with  them.  I 
told  tiiem  I  could  not  at  that  time,  as  my  brother-in-law  was  not  at 
home  ;  however,  they  urged  me  to  go  the  next  day,  and  spend  one 
day  with  them.  The  day  being  fine,  I  accordingly  went.  When  I 
arrived  at  the  foot  of  the  hill.  Young  and  Kimball  were  standing 
conversing  together.  They  both  came  to  me,  and,  after  several 
flattering  compliments,  Kimball  wished  me  to  go  to  his  house  first. 
I  said  it  was  immaterial  to  me,  and  accordingly  went.  We  had  not, 
however,  gone  many  steps  when  Young  suddenly  stopped,  and  said 
he  would  go  to  that  brother's,  (pointing  to  a  little  log  hut  a  few 
yards  distant,)  and  tell  him  that  you  (speaking  to  Knnball)  and 
brother  Glover,  or  Grover,  (I  do  not  remember  which,)  will  value 
his  land.  When  he  had  gone,  Kimball  turned  to  me  and  said, 
'  Martha,  I  want  you  to  say  to  ray  wife,  when  you  go  to  my  house, 
that  you  want  to  buy  some  things  at  Joseph's  store,  (Joseph  Smith's,) 
and  I  will  say  I  am  going  with  you,  to  show  you  the  way.  You 
know  you  want  to  see  the  Prophet,  and  you  will  then  have  an 
opportunity.'  I  made  no  reply.  Young  again  made  his  appearance, 
and  the  subject  was  dropped.  We  soon  reached  Kimball's  house, 
where  Young  took  his  leave,  saying,  '  I  shall  see  jj'ou  again,  Martha.' 
I  remained  at  Kimball's  near  an  hour,  when  Kimball,  seeing  that  1 
would  not  tell. the  lies  he  wished  me  to,  told  them  to  his  wife  him- 
self. He  then  went  and  whispered  in  her  ear,  and  asked  if  that 
would  please  her.  '  Yes,'  said  she,  '  or  I  can  go  along  with  you  and 
Martha.'  'No,'  said  he,  'I  have  some  business  to  do,  and  I  will 
call  for  you  afterwards  to  go  with-  me  to  the  debate,"  meaning  the 
debate  between  yonrself  and  Joseph.  To  this  she  consented.  So 
Kimball  and  1  went  to  the  store  together.  As  we  were  going  along, 
he  said,  '  Sister  Martha,  are  you  willing  to  do  all  that  the  Prophet 
requires  you  to  do  .' '  I  said  I  believed  I  was,  thinking  of  course  he 
would  require  nothing  wrong.  '  Then,'  said  he,  '  are  you  ready  to 
take  counsel  .' '  I  answered  in  the  affirmative,  thinking  of  the  great 
and  glorious  blessings  that  had  been  pronounced  upon  my  head,  if  I 
adhered  to  the  counsel  of  those  placed  over  me  in  the  Lord.  '  Well,' 
said  he,  '  there  are  many  things  revealed  in  these  last  days  that  the 
world  would  laugh  and  scoff  at ;  but  unto  us  is  given  to  know  the 
mysteries  of  the  kingdom.'  He  further  observed, '  Martha,  you  nmst 
learn  to  hold  your  tongue,  and  it  will  be  well  with  you.  You  will 
see  Joseph,  and  very  likely  have  some  conversation  with  him,  and 
he  will  tell  you  what  you  shall  do.'  W^hen  we  reached  the  building, 
he  led  me  up  some  stairs  to  a  small  room,  the  door  of  wliich  was 
locked,  and  on  it  the  folhnving  inscription  :  '  Positively  no  admit- 
tance.' He  observed,  '  Ah  !  brother  Joseph  must  be  sick,  for, 
strange  to  say,  he  is  not  here.  Come  down  into  the  tithing-office, 
Martha.'  He  then  left  me  in  the  tithing-office,  and  went  out,  I 
know  not  where.  In  this  office  were  two  men  writing,  one  of 
whom,  William  Clayton,  I  had  seen  in  England  ;  the  other  I  did 
not  know.    Young  came  in,  and  seated  himself  before  me,  and  asked 


238  HISTORY   OF    THE    SAINTS. 

where  Kimball  was.     I  said  he   had  gone  out.     He  said  it  was  all 
right.     Soon  after,  Joseph  came  in,  and  spoke  to  one  of  the  clerks, 
and  then   went  up  stairs,  followed  by  Young.      Immediately  after, 
Kimball  came  in.     '  Now,  Martha,'  said  he,  '  the  Prophet  has  come; 
come   up  stairs.'     I  went,  and   we   found  Young  and   the   Prophet 
alone.     I  was  introduced  to  the  Prophet  by  Young.     Joscpli  offisred 
me  his  seat,  and,  to  my  astonishment,  the  moment  1  was  seated,  Jo- 
seph and  Kimball  walked  out  of  the  room,  and  left  me  with  Young, 
who  arose,  locked  the  door,  closed  tlie  window,  and  drew  the  cur- 
tain.   He  then  came  and  sat  before  me,  and  said, '  This  is  our  private 
room,  Martha.'     '  Indeed,  sir,'  said  I,  '  I  must  be  highly  honored  to 
be  permitted  to  enter  it.'     He  smiled,  and  then  proceeded  —  '  Sister 
Martha,  I  want  to  ask  you  a  few  questions ;  will  you  answer  them .' ' 
'  Yes,  sir,'  said  I.     '  And  ^will  you  promise  not  to  mention  tliem  to 
any  one  .'' '    'If  it  is  your  desire,  sir,'  said  I,  '  I  will  not.'     '  And  you 
will  not  tliink  any  tlie  worse  of  me  for  it,  will  you,  Martha  '; '  said 
he.     '  No,  sir,'  I  replied.     '  Well,'  said  he,  '  what  are  your  feelings 
towards  me  ?  '     I   replied,   '  My  feelings  are  just  the   same  towards 
you  that  they  ever  were,  sir.'     '  But,  to  come   to  the   point  more 
closely,'  said  he,  'have   not  you   an  atfection  for  me,  that,  were  it 
lawful   and  right,  you  could   accept  of  me   for  your  husband  and 
companion  .' '    My  feelings  at  that  moment  were  indescribable.     God 
only  knows  them.     What,  thought  I,  are  these  men,  tliat  I  thought 
almost  perfection  itself,  f/eceircji-A' .?  and  is   all   my  fancied   happiness 
but  a  dream  ?     'Twas  even  so ;  but  my  next  thought  was,  which  is 
tlie  best  way  for  me  to  act  at  this  time  .''   If  I  say  no,  they  may  do  as 
they  think  proper  ;  and  to  say  yes,  I  never  would.     So  I  considered 
it  best  to  ask  for  time   to  think  and  pray  about  it.     I  therefore  said, 
'  If  it  was  lawful  and  right,  perhaps  I  might ;  but  you  know,  sir,  it 
is  not.'     '  Well,  but,'  said  he,  '  brother  Joseph  has  had  a  revelation 
from  God  that  it  is  lawful  and  right  for  a  man  to  have  two  wives ; 
for,  as  it  was  in  the  days  of  Abraham,  so  it  shall  be  in  these  last 
days,  and  whoever  is  the  first  that  is  willing  to  take  up  the  cross 
will  receive  the  greatest  blessings  ;    and  if  3'ou  will  accept  of  me,  1 
will  take  you  straight  to  the  celestial  kingdom ;    and  if  you  will 
have  me   in  this  world,  I  will  have  you  in  that  which  is  to  come, 
and  brother  Joseph  will  marry  us  here  to-day,  and  you  can  go  home 
this  evening,  and  your  parents  will  not  know  any  thing  about  it.' 
'  Sir,'  said  I,  '  I  should  not  like  to  do  any  thing  of  the  kind  without 
the  permission  of  my  parents.'     'Well,  but,'   said   he,   'you  are  of 
age,  are  you  not .-"    '  No,  sir,'   sfiid  I,   '  I  shall  not  be  until  the  24th 
of  Ma}'.'     '  Well,'  said  he,  '  that  does  not  make  any  difference.    You 
will  be  of  age  before  they  know,  and  you  need  not  fear.     If  you  will 
take  my  counsel,  it  will  be  well  with  you,  for  I  know  it  to   be   right 
])efore  God,  and  if  there  is  any  sin  in  it,  I  will  answer  for  it.     But 
brother  Joseph  wishes  to  have  some  talk  with  you  on  the  subject  — 
he  will  explain  things —  will  you  hear  him  ?  '    '  I  do  not  mind,'  said  I. 
'  Well,  but  I  want  you  to  say  something,'  said  he.     '  I  want  time  to 
think  about  it,'  said  I.    '  Well,'  said  he,  '  I  will  have  a  kiss,  anyhow," 
and  then  rose,  and  said  he  would  bring  Joseph.     He   then  unlocked 
the  door,  and  took  the  key,  and  locked  me  up  alone.    He  was  absent 
about  ten  minutes,  and  tlien  returned  with  Joseph.  '  Well,'  said  Young, 


A5I0URS    AND    ATTEMPTED    SEDUCTIONS.  239 

'  sister  Martha  would  ho  willing  if  she  know  it  was  lawful  and  right 
before  God.'  '  Well,  Martha,'  said  Joseph,  '  it  is  lawful  and  right 
before  God  —  I  knoto  it  is.  Look  here,  sis  ;  don't  you  believe  in 
me.'''  I  did  not  answer.  'Well,  Martha,'  said  Joseph,  'just  go 
ahead,  and  do  as  Brighani  wants  you  to  —  lie  is  the  best  man  in  the 
world,  except  me.'  '  O  !  '  said  Brighani,  '  then  you  are  as  good.' 
'  Yes,'  said  Joseph.  '  Well,'  said  Young,  '  we  believe  Joseph  to  be  a 
Prophet.  I  have  known  him  near  eiglit  years,  and  always  found 
him  the  same.  '  Y'es,'  said  Joseph,  '  and  I  know  that  this  is  lawful 
and  right  before  God,  and  if  there  is  any  sin  in  it,  I  will  answer  for 
it  before  God;  and  I  have  the  keys  of  the  kingdom,  and  whatever  I 
bind  on  earth  is  bound  in  heaven,  and  whatever  I  loose  on  earth  is 
loosed  in  heaven  ,  and  if  you  will  accept  of  Brighain,  you  shall  be 
blessed —  God  shall  bless  you,  and  my  blessing  shall  rest  upon  you; 
and  if  you  will  be  led  byliiai,  you  will  do  well;  for  I  know  Brighani 
will  take  care  of  you,  and  if  he  don't  do  his  duty  to  you,  come  to  me, 
and  I  will  make  him  ;  and  if  you  do  not  like  it  in  a  month  or  two, 
come  to  ine,and  I  will  make  you  free  again ;  and  if  he  turns  you  otF, 
I  will  take  you  on.'  '  Sir,'  said  1,  rather  warmly,  '  it  will  bo  too 
late  to  tiiink  in  a  month  or  two  after.  I  want  time  to  think  first.' 
'  Well,  but,'  said  he,  '  the  old  proverb  is,  "  Nothing  ventured,  noth- 
ing gained;  "  and  it  would  be  the  greatest  blessing  that  was  ever 
bestowed  upo'n  you.'  '  Yes,'  said  Young,  '  and  you  will  never  have 
reason  to  repent  it  —  that  is,  if  I  do  not  turn  from  rigliteousness, 
and  that  I  trust  I  never  shall ;  for  I  believe  God,  who  has  kept  me  so 
long,  will  continue  to  keep  me  faithful.  Did  you  ever  see  me  act  in 
any  way  wrong  in  England,  Martha  .'' '  '  No,  sir,'  said  I.  'No,'  said 
he ;  '  neither  can  any  one  else  lay  any  thing  to  my  charge.'  '  Well, 
then,'  said  Joseph,  'what  are  you  afraid  of,  sis.''  Come,  let  me  do 
the  business  for  you.'  '  Sir,'  said  I,  '  do  let  ine  have  a  little  time  to 
think  about  it,  and  I  will  promise  not  to  mention  it  to  any  one.' 
'  Well,  but  look  here,'  said  he ;  '  you  know  a  fellow  will  never  be 
damned  for  doing  the  best  he  knows  how.'  '  Well,  then,'  said  I, 
'  the  best  way  I  know  of,  is  to  go  home  and  think  and  pray  about  it.' 
'  Well,'  said  Young,  '  I  shall  leave  it  with  brother  Joseph,  whether 
it  would  be  best  for  you  to  have  time  or  not.'  '  Well,'  said  Joseph, 
'  I  see  no  harm  in  her  having  time  to  think,  if  she  will  not  fall  into 
temptation.'  '  O,  sir,'  said  I,  '  there  is  no  fear  of  my  falling  into 
temptation.'  'Well,  but,'  said  Brigliam,  'you  must  promise  me  you 
will  never  mention  it  to  anyone.'  '  I  do  promise  it,'  said  I.  '  Well,' 
said  Joseph,  'you  must  promise  me  the  same.'  I  promised  him  the 
same.  '  Upon  your  honor,'  said  he,  '  you  will  not  tell.  '  No,  sir,  I 
will  lose  my  life  first,'  said  I.  '  Well,  that  will  do,'  saia  he  ;  '  that  is 
the  principle  we  go  upon.  I  think  I  can  trust  you,  Martlia,'  said 
he.  '  Yes,'  said  1,  '  I  think  you  ought.'  Joseph  said,  '  She  looks  as 
if  she  could  keep  a  secret.'  I  then  rose  to  go,  when  Joseph  com- 
menced to  beg  of  me  again.  He  said  it  was  the  best  opportunity 
they  might  have  for  months,  for  the  room  was  often  engaged.  I, 
however,  had  determined  what  to  do.  '  Well,'  said  Young,  '  1  will 
see  you  to-morrow.  I  am  going  to  preach  at  the  school-house,  oppo- 
site your  house.  I  have  never  preaclu^d  there  yet ;  you  will  be 
there,  I  suppose.'     'Yes,'  said  I. — The  next  day  being  Sunday,  1 


240  HISTORY   OF   THE    SAINTS. 

sat  down,  instead  of  going  to  meeting,  and  wrote  the  conversation, 
and  gave  it  to  my  sister,  who  was  not  a  little  surprised  ;  but  she  said  j 
it  would  be  best  to  go  to  meeting  in  the  afternoon.  We  went,  and  | 
Young  administered  the  sacrament.  After  it  was  over,  I  was  pass-  j 
ing  out,  and  Young  stopped  me,  saying,  '  Wait,  Martha,  I  am  com-  ' 
ing.'  I  said,  'I  cannot;  my  sister  is  waiting  for  me.'  He  then  threw  , 
his  coat  over  his  shoulders,  and  followed  me  out,  and  whispered,  i 
'  Have  3'ou  made  up  your  mind,  Martha  .' '  '  Not  exactly,  sir,'  said  I ;  ' 
and  we  parted.  I  sliall  proceed  to  a  justice  of  the  peace,  and  make 
oath  to  the  truth  of  these  statements,  and  you  are  at  liberty  to  make  '. 
what  use  of  them  you  may  think  best.  ^ 

"  Yours,  respectfully,  •    I 

"Martha  H.  Brotherton.       '• 

"  Sworn  to  and  subscribed  before  me,  this  13th  day  of  July,  A.  D.  ' 
1842.  "  Du  BouFFAY  Frf.mo.v,  I 

^^Justice  of  the  Peace  for  St.  Louis  County." 

"What  a  tale  of  infamy  !  What  a  record  of  black-hearted  i 
villany  and  depravity  !  Well  does  this  young  lady  deserve  j 
the  praise  of  her  sex  and  the  world,  for  her  courage  and  [ 
virtue  in  resistincr  and  repulsinw  with  such  sicrnal  success  ' 
the  toul  miscreants  who  were  tempting  her  to  crime  by  I 
the  most  insidious  and  powerful  arts.  I 

The  North-Western  Gazette  and  Galena  Advertiser  of  ; 
July  '2S,  1842,  a  pn.per  edited    by  H.  H.  Haughton,  Esq., 
in  speaking  on  this  subject,  says, — 

"In  our  columns  to-day  will  be  found  the  affidavit  of  Martha 
H.  Brothkrton,  who,  it  will  be  remembered,  was  called  upon  to 
make  a  public  statement  of  her  treatment  while  among  the  Mor- 
mons.    Her  story  is  told  in  an  artless  manner,  and  goes  strongly  to   \ 
corroborate   Bennett's   statement.      There    is  something  peculiarly    ' 
infamous  in  the  practice  of  sending  to  England   to  induce  simple-    j 
hearted  females  to  leave  their  homes,  to  be  exposed  to  the  arts  of  as   ; 
shrewd  a  set  of  scamps  as  could  well  be  congregated  together."  j 

The  Pittsburgh  Mornin<r  Chronide  of  July  26,  1842,  a  , 

paper  edited  by  J.  Heron  Foster,  Esq.,  and  Wm.  H.  Whit-   ; 

iiey,  Esq.,  in  alluding  to  the  same  circumstance,  remarks,  — 

"  The  last  Nauvoo  Wasp,  a  Mormon  paper,  contains  Joe  Smith's  ^ 

phrenological  chart,  in  which    the    organ  of  '  Amativeness '   is  set  | 

down   as   'very  large — giving   a   controlling    influence,  and   very  i 

liable  to  perversion.'     We  think  the  affidavit  of  Miss  Brotherton,  in  ' 

another  column,  proves  the  truth  of  tlie  science  of  phrenology  con-  ! 
clusively." 

I  should  think  as  much.     Joe's  "Amativeness"  is  larfire, 

VERY   LARGE, —  and   perfectly    unrestrained.      There   are  ' 

eyes  that  see  that  he  knows  not  of,  and  ears  that  hear  that  ' 

he  understands  not,  and  that  Uncircumcised  Philistine  will  ' 


AMOURS  AND  ATTEMPTED  SEDUCTIONS.     241 

find  that  Samson  will  be  upon  him  in  a  day  when  he  looks 
not  for  him,  and  in  an  hour  when  he  thinks  not. 


MISS    NANCY    RIGDON. 

Miss  Rigdon  is  the  eldest  unmarried  daughter  of  Sidney 
Rigdon,  Esq.,  and  is  a  beautiful  girl,  of  irreproachable 
fame,  great  moral  excellence,  and  superior  intellectual  en- 
dowments. She  is  a  young  lady  of  many  charms  and 
varied  attractions ;  but  she,  too,  was  marked  out  for  the 
Cloister.  Joe  could  not  suffer  a  pretty  woman  to  escape 
withoilt  a  trial.  The  inquisitorial  seraglio  must  swallow 
up  most  cases,  and  secure  the  beautiful  birds  of  gaudy 
plumage  or  fascinating  charms.  If  they  fail  to  be  in- 
snared  by  the  Cyprian  Saints,  they  are  liable  to  be  taken 
in  the  net  of  the  Chambered  Sisters  of  Charity ;  if  they 
pass  that  fiery  ordeal,  the  poisoned  arrows  of  the  Conse- 
cratees  of  the  Cloister  await  them  :  but  this  girl  passed  the 
Rubicon  with  heroic  firmness.  Knowing  that  I  had  much 
influence  with  Mr.  Rigdon's  family,  Joe  Smith  said  to  me, 
one  day  last  summer,  when  riding  together  over  the  lawn, 
in  Nauvoo,  "If  you  will  assist  me  in  procuring  Nancy  as 
one  of  my  spiritual  wives,  I  will  give  you  five  hundred 
dollars,  or  the  best  lot  on  Main  Street."  I  replied,  "  I 
cannot  agree  to  it.  Elder  Rigdon  is  one  of  my  best 
friends,  and  his  family  are  now  pure  and  spotless,  and  it 
would  be  a  great  pity  to  approach  the  truly  virtuous." 
"  But,"  said  Joe,  "  the  Lord  has  given  her  to  me  to  wife. 
I  have  the  blessings  of  Jacob,  [meaning  thereby  a  plurality 
of  wives,]  and  there  is  no  wickedness  in  it.  It  would  be 
wicked  to  approach  her,  unless  I  had  permission  of  the 
Lord  ;  but,  as  it  is,  it  is  as  correct  as  to  have  a  legal  wife, 
in  a  ?«orrtZ  point  of  view."  I  replied  that  it  might  be  so, 
bat  tliat  he  must  see  her  himself,  as  I  could  not  approach 
her  on  a  subject  of  that  kind.  There  I  supposed  the 
matter  had  ended ;  but,  at  the  funeral  of  Mr.  Ephraim 
R.  Marks,  Mrs.  Hyde  told  Miss  Rigdon  that  Joseph  de- 
sired to  see  her  at  the  printing-office,  where  Mrs.  Hyde 
and  Dr.  Richards  resided,  on  special  business.  Slie  said 
she  would  go,  and  accordincrly  did ;  but  Joe  was  busily  en- 
gaged at  his  store.  Dr.  Willard  Richards,  however,  one 
21 


242  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

of  the  holy  twelve  Mormon  Apostles,  and  Spiritual  High 
Priest,  and  Pander-General  for  Lust,  whom  I  had  long 
suspected  as  being  up  to  his  eyes  in  the  business  with  Joe, 
came  in,  and  said,  "  Miss  Nancy,  Joseph  cannot  be  in  to- 
day ;  please  call  again  on  Thursday."  This  she  agreed  to 
do ;  but  she  communicated  the  matter  to  Colonel  Francis 
M.  Hiofbee,  who  was  addressing  her,  and  asked  his  advice 
as  to  the  second  visit.  I  then  came  to  a  knowledge  of  the 
facts,  and  went  immediately  to  Joe,  and  said  to  him, 
"  Joseph,  you  are  a  Master  Mason,  and  Nancy  is  a  Master 
Mason's  daughter,  [so  is  Mrs.  Pratt,  the  daughter  of  Mr. 
Bates;]  so  stay  your  hand,  or  you  will  get  into  trouble  — 
remember  your  obligation.^'  Joe  replied,  "  You  are  my 
enemy,  and  wish  to  oppose  me."  I  then  went  to  Colonel 
Higbee,  and  told  him  Joe's  designs,  and  requested  him  to 
go  immediately  and  see  Miss  Rigdon,  and  tell  her  the  in- 
fernal plot  —  that  Joe  would  approach  her  in  the  name  of 
the  Lord,  by  special  revelation,  &lc.,  and  to  put  her  on 
her  guard,  but  advise  her  to  go  and  see  for  herself  what 
Joe  would  do.  He  did  so,  and  she  went  down.  Joe 
was  there,  took  her  into  a  private  room,  (his  favorite  as- 
signation room,)  and  locked  the  door,  undoubtedly 
thinking  somewhat  in  the  strain  of  the  poet, — 

"Nancy,  my  love,  we  ne'er  were  sages, 

But,  trust  me,  all  that  Tully's  zeal 
Expressed  for  Plato's  glowing  pages, 

All  that,  and  more,  for  thee  I  feel ' 


• 


"  Whate'er  the  heartless  world  decree, 
Howe'er  unfeeling  prudes  condemn, 

Nancy  !  Fd  rather  sin  with  thee. 

Than  live  and  die  a  saint  with  them.' 

Joe  then  swore  her  to  secrecy,  and  told  her  that  she 
had  long  been  the  idol  of  his  affections,  and  that  he  had 
asked  the  Lord  for  her,  and  that  it  was  his  holy  will  that 
he  should  have  her  as  one  of  the  Chambered  Sisters  of 
Charitij ;  but  that,  if  she  had  any  scruples  on  the  subject, 
he  would  consecrate  her  with  the  Cloistered  Saints,  and 
MARRY  HER  IMMEDIATELY  —  that  it  iiwuM  not  prevent  her 
from  marrying  any  other  person  —  that  he  had  the  bless- 
ings of  Jacob  granted  to  him  —  and  that  all  was  lawful 


AMOURS  AND  ATTEMPTED  SEDUCTIONS.      243 

and  right  before  God.  He  then  attempted  to  kiss  her,  and 
desired  her  to  kiss  him.  —  But  we  must  again  quote  the 
bard  to  express  the  scene  :  — 

"  I  ne'er  on  that  lip  for  a  minute  have  gazed, 

But  a  thousand  temptations  beset  me  ; 
And  I've  thouglit,  as  the  dear  little  rubies  you  raised, 
How  delicious  'twould  be — if  you'd  let  me! 

"  Then  be  not  so  angry  for  what  I  have  done, 

Nor  say  that  you've  sworn  to  forget  me  ; 
They  were  buds  of  temptation  too  pouting  to  shun, 

And  I  thought  that  —  you  could  not  but  let  me ! 

"  When  your  lip  witii  a  whisper  came  close  to  ray  cheek, 

O,  think  how  bewitching  it  met  me  ! 
And  plain  as  the  eye  of  a  'V^enus  could  speak, 

Your  eye  seemed  to  say  —  you  loould  let  me  ! 

"  Then  forgive  the  transgression,  and  bid  me  remain. 

For,  in  truth,  if  I  go  you'll  regret  me ; 
Or,  O  !  — let  me  try  the  transgression  again. 

And  I'll  do  all  you  wish  —  icill  you  Let  me?" 

But  Joe  couldn't  come  it  —  he  had  to  stand  back  a 
little,  where  he  could  see  better  —  the  Old  Fox  found  sour 
grapes  once  more !  She  told  him  she  would  alarm  the 
neighbors  if  he  did  not  open  the  door  and  let  her  out  im- 
mediately. He  did  so;  and,  as  she  was  much  agitated,  he 
requested  Mrs.  Hyde  to  explain  matters  to  her;  and,  after 
agreeing  to  write  her  a  doctrinal  letter,  left  the  house. 
Mrs.  Hyde  told  her  that  these  things  looked  strange  to  her 
at  first,  but  that  she  would  become  more  reconciled  on 
mature  reflection.  Miss  Rigdon  replied,  "  I  never  shall," 
left  the  house,  and  returned  home.  In  a  day  or  two.  Dr. 
Richards,  who  is  so  notorious  for  Hyde-\ng  in  these  last 
days,  handed  her  the  following  letter  from  the  Prophet 
Joe,  (written  by  Richards,  by  Joe's  dictation,)  and  reauest- 
ed  her  to  burn  it  after  reading,  to  wit :  — 

"  Happiness  is  the  object  and  design  of  our  existence,  and  will  be 
the  end  thereof,  if  we  pursue  the  path  that  leads  to  it ;  and  this  path 
is  virtue,  uprightness,  faithfulness,  holiness,  and  keeping  a/Z  the  com- 
mandments of  God;  but  we  cannot  keep  all  the  commandments 
without  first  knowing  them,  and  we  cannot  expect  to  know  all,  or 
more  than  we  now  know,  unless  we  comply  with  or  keep  those  we 


244  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

have  ALREADY  RECEIVED  !  That  wliich  is  7nrong  under  one  cir- 
cumstance, may  be,  and  often  is,  rigid  under  another.  God  said, 
Thoushalt?jo<  kill;  at  another  time  he  said,  Tliou  shall  utterly  destroy. 
This  is  tlie  principle  on  which  the  government  of  Heaven  is  con-, 
ducted,  by  revelation  adapted  to  the  circumstances  in  which 
the  children  of  the  kingdom  are  placed.  Whatever  God  requires  is 
right,  NO  MATTER  WHAT  IT  IS,  although  we  may  not  see  the  reason 
thereof  till  long  after  the  events  transpire.  If  we  seek  first  the 
kingdom  of  God,  all  good  things  will  be  added.  So  with  Solomun  ; 
first  lie  asked  wisdom,  and  God  gave  it  him,  and  with  it  every  de- 
sire OF  HIS  heart;  even  things  which  might  be  considered 
ABOMINABLE  to  all  wlio  Understand  the  order  of  Heaven  only  in 
part,  but  which,  in  reality,  were  right,  because  God  gave  and  sanc- 
tioned BY  special  revelation,  a  parent  may  whip  a  child,  and 
justly  too,  because  he  stole  an  apple;  whereas,  if  the  child  had 
asked  for  the  apple,  and  the  parent  had  given  it,  the  child  would 
have  eaten  it  with  a  better  appetite ;  there  would  have  been  no 
stripes;  all  the  pleasures  of  the  apple  would  have  been  secured,  all 
the  misery  of  stealing  lost.  This  principle  will  justly  apply  to  all 
of  God's  dealings  with  his  children.  Every  thing  that  Goci  gives 
us  is  lairful  and  right,  and  it  is  proper  that  we  should  enjoy  his  gifts 
and  blessings,  whenever  and  wherever  he  is  disposed  to  bestow; 
but  if  we  should  seize  upon  those  same  blessings  and  enioyments 
without  late,  without  revelation,  without  COMMANDMENT, 
those  blessings  and  enjoyments  would  prove  cursings  and  vexations 
in  the  end,  and  we  should  have  to  lie  down  in  sorrow  and  wailings 
of  everlasting  regret.  But  in  obedience  there  is  joy  and  peace  un- 
spotted, unalloyed ;  and  as  God  has  designed  our  happiness,  the 
happiness  of  all  his  creatures,  he  never  has,  he  never  will,  institute 
an  ordinance  or  give  a  commandment  to  his  people  that  is  not  cal- 
culated in  its  nature  to  promote  that  happiness  which  he  has  de- 
signed, and  which  will  not  end  in  the  greatest  amount  of  good  and 
glory  to  those  who  become  the  recipients  of  his  law  and  ordinances. 
Blessings  offered,  but  rejected,  are  no  longer  blessings,  but  become 
like  the  talent  hid  in  the  earth  by  the  wicked  and  slothful 
servant;  the  proffered  good  returns  to  the  giver;  the  blessing  is  be- 
stowed on  those  who  will  receive,  and  occupy;  for  unto  him  that  hath 
shall  be  given,  and  he  shall  have  abundantly,  but  unto  him  that 
hath  not,  or  will  not  receive,  shall  be  taken  awav  that  which  he  hath, 
or  might  have  had. 

"  '  Be  wise  to-day  ;  'tis  madness  to  defer !  " 

Next  day  the  fatal  precedent  may  plead  ; 
Thus  on  till  wisdom  is  pushed  out  of  time,'  into  eternity. 

"  Our  Heavenly  Father  is  more  liberal  in  his  views,  and  boundless 
in  his  mercies  and  blessings,  than  we  are  ready  to  believe  or  receive, 
and,  at  the  same  time,  is  more  terrible  to  the  workers  of  iniquity, 
more  awful  in  the  executions  of  his  punishments,  and  more  ready 
to  detect  every  false  way  than  we  are  apt  to  suppose  him  to  be;  he 
will  be  inquired  of  by  his  children;  he  says,  ^Isk  and  ye  shall  re- 
ceive, seek  and  ye  shall  find  ;  but,  if  ye  will  take  that  which  is 


AMOURS  AND  ATTEMPTED  SEDUCTIONS.     245 

not  your  own,  or  which  I  have  not  given  you,  you  shall  be  rewarded 
according  to  your  deeds ;  but  no  good  thing  will  I  withhold  from 
them  icho  icalk  uprightly  before  me,  and  do  u»y  will  in  all  things ; 
who  will  listen  to  my  voice  and  to  the  voice  of  MY  SERVANT 
WHOM  I  HAVE  SKNT  ;  for  I  delight  in  those  who  seek  diligently  to 
know  my  precepts,  and  abide  by  the  laivs  of  my  kingdom  ;  for  all 

THINGS     SHALL     BK     MADK     KNOWN     UNTO    THEM     IN     MINE     OWN     DUE 

TIME,  and  in  the  end  they  shall  have  joy." 

The  original,  of  which  the  above  is  a  literal  copy,  in 
the  hand-writing  of  Dr.  Richards,  is  now  in  my  possession. 
It  was  handed  me  by  Colonel  F.  M.  Higbee,  in  the 
presence  of  General  George  W.  Robinson. 

Here  you  have  the  doctrine,  in  bold  relief,  as  taught  in 
the  upper  sanctuary  of  the  great  Mormon  Seraglio.  On 
Tuesday,  the  28th  day  of  June  last,  Joe  went  to  Mr.  Rig- 
don's,  accompanied  by  his  High  Priest,  George  Miller,  of 
Sable  Sister  notoriety,  for  a  witness  for  him  that  he  had 
successfully  confronted  Miss  Rigdon,  and,  by  boisterous 
words  and  violent  gestures,  tried  to  deny  the  attempted 
seduction  and  alarm  the  girl;  but,  with  daring  bravery, 
she  met  the  Monster  of  Iniquity,  and  told  him  he  was  a 
"  cursed  liar; "  that  all  that  she  had  said  of  him  was  true 
to  the  letter,  and  dared  him  to  face  her  to  the  contrary. 
Joe  then  made  a  full  acknowledgment  of  the  whole  affair, 
in  presence  of  the  family,  and  several  other  persons  who 
were  present.  The  Demoniacal  High  Priest,  George 
Miller,  then  groaned  in  the  spirit,  and  cried  aloud, 
"  You  must  not  harm  the  Lord' s  Anointed ;  the  Lord  icill 
not  suffer  his  Anointed  to  fall!  !  !"  If  Joe  did  not  offer 
another  lamb  in  sacrifice,  as  a  burnt  sin-offering,  on  an 
altar  of  twelve  stones,  I  fear  the  Destroying  Angel  will  get 
him,  for  even  the  fiends  of  his  father's  kingdom  have 
demurred  to  the  spiritual  doctrines  of  his  seraglio. 


Extract  of  a  letter  from  General  George  W.  Robinson  to  General 
James  Arlington  Bennet,  LL.  D.,  ivkich  I  take  the  responsibility 
of  publishing,  as  it  is  a  material  document,  and  pertinent  to  the 
case  under  consideration. 

"  Nauvoo,  Julij  27,  1842. 
"  Dear  Sir,— 

»«**»»*»■*■»» 

"  Smith  and   Bennett  have   always  been   on   very 
friendly  terms,  and  were  together  a  great  deal,  and  1  have  no  doubt 
21  * 


246  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

but  that  Bennett  was  Smith's  confidant  in  nearly  all  things.  It  ap- 
pears from  General  Bennett's  story,  that  Smith  stated  that  the  doc- 
trine of  a  plurality  of  wives  was  correct,  and  that  he  intended  io  practise 
upon  the  principles,  and  that  he  enjoined  secrecy  on  Bennett,  as  also 
on  the  females  to  whom  he  made  known  his  desires  and  doctrine. 
Bennett  says  that  he  (Smitii)  succeeded  admirably  in  many  instances, 
and  in  others,  he  privately  married  the  females  who  had  any  scruples 

of  conscience  about  con ,  &c.  &c.    General  Bennett  states  that 

Smith  offered  him  $500,  or  his  choice  in  town  lots  on  Main  Street, 
if  he  would  succeed  in  getting  him  Mr.  Rigdon's  eldest  unmarried 
daughter  for  a  spiritual  wife.  Bennett  utterly  refused  to  have  any 
thing  to  do  tcith  the  matter,  and  cautioned  Smith  against  such  an  at- 
tempt. Smith  says,  'You  are  my  enemy,'  &c.  Bennett  says  to 
Smith,  '  If  you  go  there,  you  will  get  into  trouble  ; '  but  Smith,  it 
seems,  persisted,  and  was  determined  to  succeed  in  all  his  under- 
takings. Smith  sent  for  Miss  Rigdon  to  come  to  the  house  of  Mrs. 
Hyde,  who  lived  in  the  under  rooms  of  the  printing-office.  Miss 
Rigdon  inquired  of  the  messenger  who  came  for  her  what  was 
wanting,  and  the  only  reply  was,  that  Smith  wanted  to  see  her. 
General  Bennett  came  to  Miss  Rigdon,  and  cautioned  her,  and  ad- 
vised her  not  to  place  too  much  reliance  on  revelation  ;  but  did  not 
enlighten  her  on  the  object  of  Smith,  but  advised  her  to  go  down 
to  Mrs.  Hyde's,  and  see  Smith.  She  accordingly  went,  and  Smith 
took  her  into  another  room,  and  locked  the  door,  and  then  stated  to 
her  that  he  had  had  an  affection  for  her  for  several  years,  and  wished 
that  she  should  be  his;  that  the  Lord  was  well  pleased  with  this 
matter,  for  he  had  got  a  revelation  on  the  subject,  and  God  had 
given  him  all  the  blessings  of  Jacob,  &c.  &c.,  and  that  there  was  no 
sin  in  it  whatever;  but,  if  she  had  any  scruples  of  conscience  about 
the  matter,  he  loould  marry  her  privately,  and  enjoined  her  to 
secrecy,  &c.  «&c.  She  repulsed  him,  and  was  about  to  raise  the 
neighbors  if  he  did  not  unlock  the  door  and  let  her  out;  and  she 
left  him  with  disgust,  and  came  home  and  told  her  father  of  the 
transaction  ;  upon  which  Smith  was  sent  for.  He  came.  She  told 
the  tale  in  the  presence  of  all  the  family,  and  to  Smith's  face.  / 
loas  present.  Smith  attempted  to  deny  it  at  first,  and/«cc  her  down 
with  the  lie  ;  but  she  told  the  facts  wiih  so  much  earnestness,  and 
the  fact  op  a  letter  being  present,  which  he  had  caused 
to  be  written  to  her,  on  the  same  subject,  the  day  after  the 
attempt  made  on  her  virtue,  breathing  the  same  spirit,  and  which  he 
had  fondly  hoped  loas  destroyed,  —  all  came  with  such  force  that  he 
could  not  withstand  the  testimony  ;  and  he  then  and  there  acknowl- 
edged that  every  icord  of  Miss  Rigdon's  testimony  was  true.  Now 
for  his  excuse,  which  he  made  for  such  "a  base  attempt,  and  for  using 
the  name  of  the  Lord  in  vain,  on  that  occasion.     He  wished  to 

ASCERTAIN    whether    SHE    WAS  VIRTUOUS    OR    NOT,  AND    TOOK  THAT 

COURSE  TO  LEARN  THE  FACTS !!  !  I  would  Say,  sir,  that  /  hav6 
reason  to  believe  General  BennetCs  story  in  his  disclosures  of  Smith's 
rascality ;  although  I  am  not  a  witness  to  all  of  the  facts,  yet  I  am  to 
SOME.  /  liked  to  have  forgotten  to  state  that  the  affa'ir  with  Miss  Rig- 
don was  the  cause  of  Smith's  coming  out  so  on  Bennett,  he  having 


AMOURS    AND    ATTEMPTED    SEDUCTIONS.  247 

suspicions  that  Bennett  had  cautioned  her  on  the  matter 

and  he  icas  further  afraid  that  Bennett  would  make  disclosures  of 
other  matters. 

"  Very  respectfully,  yours,  &c., 

"  George  VV.  Robinson." 


From  General  Robinson  to  the  Author. 

"  Nauvoo,  August  8,  1842. 
"  General  John  C.  Bennett : 
"Dear  Sir,— 

"  I  have  written   General  James  Arlington  Bennet, 

and  given  him  to  understand  the  difficulties  between  yourself  and 
Smith.  I  have  not  yet  responded  to  the  call  in  the  Sangamo  Jour- 
nal, but  intend  to  do  so  soon.  Orson  Pratt  will  respond,  in  part, 
this  week ;  and  then,  wlien  '  The  Wasp '  shall  attack  him,  he 
will  respond  more  at  length.  There  has  been  ad****  of  a  stir 
here.  They  have  encompassed  sea  and  land  to  get  a  counter-state- 
ment out  of  every  person  you  have  mentioned  in  your  published 
letters,  or  those  you  call  upon  to  come  out  and  state  to  the  public 
what  they  know.  They  have  tried  me  to  their  satisfaction,  and 
have  given  me  up  as  a  reprobate.  Frank  has  stated  in  '  The  Wasp  ' 
that  he  knew  nothing  about  the  murder  of  a  prisoner  in  Missouri; 
but  he  did  not  say  he  knew  nothing  about  a  prisoner's  being  shot, 
as  was  ordered  by  Smith,  and  who  was  shot,  but  afterwards  re- 
covered. Frank  will  come  out  soon  ;  he  is  doing  a  good  work.  Mrs. 
Pratt  will  come  out,  and  so  will  Mr.  Pratt.  Mrs.  While  will  come 
out.  She  was  at  Mr.  Rigdon's  yesterday.  She  said  she  would  tell 
what  she  did  know,  but  did  not  tell  what  it  would  be.  Vinson 
Knight  died  last  Sunday  —  sick  only  two  or  three  days.  Mrs.  Pratt 
will  criminate  Knight :  he  heard  that  she  was  telling  on  him,  and 
he  roared  through  the  streets  like  a  mad  bull,  and  went  to  Alder- 
man Marks  to  get  a  warrant  for  her.  Marks  could  not  make  it  out 
then,  and  before  Knight  had  time  to  get  it,  he  went  whence 
he  will  not  return.  Mr.  Rigdon  will  say  something  as  soon  as  he 
is  able  to  write.  He  has  letters  from  all  quarters,  making  inquiries 
about  your  accusations  against  Smith  ;  he  invariably  answers  them 
with  regard  to  the  case  of  Nancy  as  it  was,  but  says  "he  knows  noth- 
ing of  the  balance,  as  he  has  been  sick  for  some  time,  and  did  not 
know  what  was  going  on  ;  but  so  eager  were  the  worthies  to  get 
something  from  him,  tiiat  they  have  taken  an  extract  from  a  letter 
which  he  wrote  to  H.  Smith,  some  time  ago,  and  they  have  put  it 
in  '  The  Wasp,'  as  an  answer  to  your  call.  Mr.  Rigdon  says, 
'  Drowning  men  catch  at  straws.'  Nancy  don't  like  to  be  called  into 
the  field,  to  say  any  thing  about  her  case  herself,  but  says  I  may 
mention  it,  ichich  I  shall  most  assuredly  do.  I  have  something  new 
to  communicate  respecting  Order  Lodgk,  (though  I  do  not  expect 
it  is  new  to  you.)    After  they  are  initiated  into  the  lodge,  they  have 


248  HISTORY  or  the  saints. 

oil  poured  on  them,  and  then  a  mark  or  hole  cut  in  the  breast  of 
their  shirts,  which  shirts  must  not  be  worn  any  more,  but  laid  up 
to  keep  the  Destroying  Angel  from  them  and  their  families,  and 
they  should  never  die  ;  but  Knight's  shirt  would  not  save  him.  No 
one  must  have  charge  of  their  shirts  but  their  wives. 

it         »         «         »         «         *         «         «         «         *         » 

"  Respectfully  yours, 

"  George  W.  Robinson." 


From  General  Robinson  to  the  Jlut/ior. 

"  Nauvoo,  September  16,  1842. 
"  General  Bennett : 
"Dear  Sir,— 

"  Your  letter  of  August  26,  written  from  New  York, 
was  received  yesterda)'.  I  was  truly  glad  to  hear  from  you  once 
more-  I  am  here  on  business,  as  you  know  I  now  reside  at  La  Harpe. 
Joe  keeps  hid  yet;  he  dare  not  show  himself  publicly.  Hyrum 
Smith  and  William  Law  have  gone  east  preaching  !  !  ns  they  say ; 
that  is  all  I  know  abotit  it.  Some  three  or  four  hundred  Mormons 
have  gone  out,  and  are  going,  to  put  down  the  excitement  which 
3'ou  have  raised,  and  to  rebut  your  statements.  They  have  an  extra 
'  Wasp '  ^^/erf  with  affidavits  to  overflowing:    some   of  the    most 

CURSED    LIES  .IN     IT    THAT    WERE     EVER    TRINTED     OR    THOUGHT    OF. 

They  are-  kept  secret  from  the  people  here,  but  are  to  be  used  when 
away,  for  a  lie  is  just  as  good  for  their  use  as  any  thing  else, 

so     THAT     PEOPLE     KNOW     NOTHING     ABOUT     IT     TO     THE     CONTRARY. 

Stephen  Markhain  swore  that  he  saw  improper  conduct  between  you 
and  Nancy  in  the  post-office.  The  young  men  in  the  city  came  for-  , 
ward,  and  gave  certificates  against  Markham,  stating  that  they  be- 
lieved Markham  wilfully  and  maliciously  lied  to  injure  the  character 
of  Miss  Rigdon,  and  to  help  Smith  out  of  his  dilemma,  and  that  they 
could  not  believe  Markham  under  oath.  V'ou  will  see  that  Joe 
wants  prodigiously  to  get  around  the  affiiir  with  Nancy,  and  will 
try  to  do  it  at  the  expense  of  lier  character.  Mr.  Rigdon  has  em- 
ployed a  lawyer  (Calvin  A.  Warren,  Esq.)  to  prosecute  Markham 
on  his  affidavit.  Smith  sent  a  letter  to  be  read  publicly  in  the  con- 
gregation last  Sunday,  written  to  General  James  Arlington  Bennet, 
of  Flatbush,  stating  to  him  that  he  was  sorry  to  inform  him  that  the 
Nauvoo  post-office  was  corrupt ;  and  that  he  was  sorry  to  inform 
him  that  John  C  Bennett  robbed  the  post-office,  while  he  was  here, 
of  all  the  mone3's  and  letters  addressed  to  him  ;  and  that  since  you 
went  away,  it  has  been  robbed  regularly  by  your  confederates,  (Mr. 
Rigdon  and  myself,  I  suppose,)  but  called  no  names.  Frank  Higbee 
[Colonel  Francis  M.  Higbee]  has  gone  to  Ohio.  He  did  not  intend 
to  contradict  your  statements,  but  he  knew  of  no  prisoner  killed; 
yet  he  did  not  say  that  there  were  no  prisoners  ordered  to  be  shot, 
neither  did  he  say  that  there  was  no  prisoner  or  prisoners  SHOT, 
but  not  killed.  Frank  is  true  blue;  but,  I  fear,  like  some  others  here, 
he  lacks  moral  courage  ! !    I  am  writing  another  article  for  the  San- 


AMOURS  AND  ATTEMPTED  SEDUCTIONS.     249 

iraino  Journal,  in  obedionce  to  the  call,  and  I  intend  to  give  them 
'^Jesse.  Captain  Joiin  F.  Olney  has,  likewise,  written  an  excellent 
article  as  a  response  to  the  call.  Nancy  stands  firm  in  the  cause  of 
virtue,  aiid  opposes  Joe  to  the  last.  I  am  jroing  to  try  to  get  Mrs. 
White  to  come  out  with  her  '  Budget.'  Can't  she  tell  a  tale  on  Joe, 
if  she  is  disposed .'  You  know.  Orson  Pratt  has  been  expelled  ! ! 
and  Jlmasa  Lyman  takes  his  place,  as  one  of  the  Apostles,  in  the 
Quorum  of  tlie  Twelve .'.' .'  *  *  * 
"  In  haste, 

"  Yours,  as  ever, 

"  GeOKGE    W.    RoBIJfSON." 


The  brave  Captain  Olney  has  spoken.     Hear  him. 

Fro7n  the  Sangamo  Journal  of  September  14,  1842. 

"MORE   OF   JOE   SMITH'S   VILLANIES ! 

«  COMMUNICATION    OF    J.  F.  OLNEV,   A  SECEDING    MORMON. 
"  L.i  Harpe,  Hancock  Co.,  September  10,  1843. 
"  Editor  of  tlw  Sangamo  Journal : 
"  Dear  Sir,— 

"  I  wish  to  make,  through  the  medium  of  your  paper,  a  pub- 
lic withdrawal  from  the  Church  of  Latter  Day  Saints,  as  I  cannot 
longer  consent  to  remain  a  member  of  said  Church  while  polygamy, 
lasciviousness,  and  adultery,  are  practised  by  some  of  its  leaders. 
That  crimes  of  the  deepest  dye  are  tolerated  and  practised  by  them, 
cannot  be  doubted. 

"  I  liave  heard  the  circumstances  of  Smith's  attack  upon  Miss 
Rigdon,  from  the  family  as  well  as  herself;  and  knowing  her  to  be 
a  young  lady  who  sustains  a  good  moral  character,  and  also  of  un- 
doubted veracity,  I  must  place  implicit  confidence  in  her  statement, 
the  foul  insinuations  of  that  miserable  little  insect,  TAe  Wasp,'  to  the 
contrary  notwithstanding. 

"  And  having  a  personal  knowledge  of  Smith's  lying  at  different 
times  in  the  name  of  the  Lord,  I  cannot  for  a  moinentr  doubt  but  he 
did  so  in  the  case  above  alluded  to.  Smith  is  so  fearful  that  his 
character  (which  is  poorest  where  best  known)  is  about  to  take  a 
sudden  flight  to  parts  unknown,  that  he  has  lately,  either  by  him- 
self on  the  public  stand,  or  by  his  organ  '  The  Wasp,'  attacked  the 
character  of  every  person,  who,  he  thinks,  will  demur,  and  proclaim 
ao-ainst  his  conduct,  or,  which  is  still  worse,  remain  neutr.IlL,  who 
have  been  referred  to  by  General  Bennett,  as  witnesses  of  said 
Smith's  conduct,  and  been  called  upon  by  the  public  to  state  what 
they  knovv  about  the  matter,  and  who  have  thus  far  refrained  from 
taking  part  with  either  side.  These  are  they  who  feel  the  indig- 
nation and  wrath  of  the  Prophet  Smith,  and  who  suffer  in  the 
MoRMO.v  community  by  the  foul  calumny  of  these  debauchees. 

"  I  know  that  Miss  "Rigdon  has  been  greatly  mortified  by  being 
obtruded  before  the  public ;  nevertheless,  it  was  unavoidable  on  her 
part,  and  if  Smith  succeeds  in  extricating  himself  from  the  awful 
dilemma  in  which  he  has  placed  himself,  by  obtaining  her  certificate 


250  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

to  the  contrary,  then  I  am  much  mistaken  in  the  character  of  Mis3 
Rigdon.  It  is  true  that  Mr.  Rigdon  has  endeavored  to  allay  the  ex- 
citement upon  this  subject,  and  has  evaded  a  direct  answer  to  the 
public,  as  far  as  he  could  consistently  with  truth  ;  but  that  part  which 
is  true  he  has  left  untouclied.  The  fact  of  Smith's  wishing  to  marry 
Miss  Rigdon  as  a  spiritual  wife,  of  his  attack  upon  her  virtue,  his 
teachings  about  his  having  the  blessings  of  Jacob,  &c.  ifcc,  as  stated 
in  General  Bennett's  letters,  ARE  TRUE ;  and  if  I  am  called  upon 
to  prove  it,  I  SHALL  DO  IT,  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  public,  and 
to  tlie  chagrin  and  mortification  of  Smith  and  others.  Tlie  letter 
published  purporting  to  be  from  Smith  to  Miss  Rigdon,  was  not  in 
Smith's  hand-writing,  but  in  the  hand-writing  of  Dr.  Willard  Rich- 
ards, who  officiated  not  only  as  scribe,  but  post  hoy,  for  the  Prophet, 
and  who  did  say  that  he  wrote  the  letter  as  dictated  by  Joseph  Smith, 
and  said  Joseph  Smith  did  say,  on  a  certain  occasion,  tliat  he  did 
direct  said  Richards  to  write  a  letter  to  Miss  Nancy  Rigdon  ;  and  I 
now  say  I  stand  ready  to  prove  these  allegations  by  as  respectable 
WITNESSES  as  can  be  produced  in  Hancock  county,  and  if  Smith  has 
no  other  means  by  which  he  can  extricate  himself  from  this  complexio 
argumenti  bicornis,  than  by  endeavoring  to  blast  the  characters  of 
the  innocent  and  unoffending,  to  shield  himself  from  infamy  and 
disgrace,  then  let  him  fire  his  Tormentum  Murale  —  and  be  gathered 
•unto  kis  Fathers. 

"  General  George  'W.  Robinson.  I  have  been  acquainted 
with  tills  gentleman  upwards  of  ten  years.  I  have  only  to  say, 
where  he  is  known,  and  in  the  community  and  circle  in  which  he 
moves,  he  is  far  above  the  reach  of  that  foul  '  Wasp,'  and  is  alto- 
gether above  reproach.  I  was  present  when  the  transaction  took 
place  between  this  gentleman  and  H.  S.  Eldridge,  who  then  and 
there  expressed  himself  perfectly  satisfied,  and  I  presume  that  feeble 
effort  would  never  have  been  made  to  injure  the  reputation  of 
General  Robinson,  if  he  had  not  made  public  his  withdrawal  from 
the  Church.  Said  Robinson  was  formerly  Joseph  Smith's  Sec- 
retary, and  was  General  Church  Clerk,  and  Recorder  for  the 
Church ;  and  I  have  heard  Smith  say  tliat  Robinson  was  the 
bravest  man  inj,he  Mormon  Band,  and  that  he  (Robinson)  had  not 
a  drop  of  cowardly  blood  in  his  veins,  and  other  eulogiums  of  the 
same  nature.     But  alas,  how  fallen  !  —  how  fallen  ! ! 

"  Stephen  Markham,  who  has  favored  the  public  with  his  affi- 
davit,* with  the  apparent  design  to  help  Smith  out  of  his  dilemma 

*  JVote  hy  Ike  Editor  of  the  Journal.  —  "  As  our  readers  are  not  acquainted  with 
the  facts  in  relation  to  Markliam's  affidavit,  a  few  wordri  of  explanation  seem  to  bo 
necessiaj'.  It  is  well  understood  that  when  any  of  those  ladies  who  are  insulted 
by  Joe,  resent  hia  insults,  and  make  an  exposure  of  his  baseness,  he  nt  ence,  with 
his  servile  tools,  attempts  to  destroy  their  character.  Such  was  the  case  in  the 
present  instance.  Unable  to  corrupt  Miss  Rigdon,  the  miserable  man,  Alarkham, 
was  employed  to  make  an  affidavit  against  Aliss  Kigdon.  But  so  well  were  the 
community  of  Nauvoo  satisfied  of  the  unsullied  purity  of  Miss  R.,  and  the  villany  of 
IVIavkliam,  that  after  the  publication  of  Rlarkham's  affidavit,  the  editor  of  'The 
Wnsp,'  by  Joe  Smith's  directions,  was  made  to  say  that  he  (Joe  Smith)  did  not  pro- 
cure for  publication  the  said  affidavit  of  Markham  !  What  a  scene  of  villany  is 
here  disclosed  !  What  putrid  and  corrupt  wretches  are  acting  in  behalf  of  Joe 
Smith  to  further  his  infamous  designs  ! 


AMOURS  AND  ATTEMPTED  SEDUCTIONS.     251 

in  the  extraordinary  affair  with  Miss  Rigdon,  is  a  man  of  little  or 
no  reputation,  and  I  could  not  believe  his  statement,  altliougli  made 
under  oath ;  and  Smith,  it  appears  in  '  The  Wasp '  of  Sd  inst., 
has  already  become  disgusted  with  this  worthy  help-meet,  and  it 
certainly  is  a  wonder  that  others  of  the  same  character,  should  not 
share  the  same  fate,  for  Smith  must  know  they  are  an  injury  to 
his  cause.  The  Mormon  Elders  are  now  scattering  in  every  direc- 
tion through  our  country,  laden  with  lies  to  injure  the  innocent  and 
oppressed. 

"  Very  respectfully,  &c. 

"  John  F.  Olney. 

"  P.  S.  Please  publish  the  above,  and  you  may  hear  from  me 
again  soon.  My  family  sickness,  as  also  my  own,  may  be  sufficient 
excuse  for  the  long  delay  to  respond  to  your  call. 

"  N.  B.  Since  writing  the  above,  I  have  received  several  cer- 
tificates, and  many  others  proffered,  to  show  to  the  public  in  what 
lio-ht  they  may  look  upon  the  certificate  of  Stephen  Markham, 
against  the  character  of  Miss  Rigdon.  You  will  confer  a  favor 
by  publishing  them  to  the  world,  and  requesting  other  periodicals 
to  do  the  same ;  for  Smith  has  just  sent  out  about  three  hundred 
Elders  from  Nauvoo,  and  many  others  from  other  places,  heavily 
laden  with  such  certificates,  to  rebut  the  statements  of  General 
Bennett.  I  have  not  entertained  the  least  doubt,  but  that  the  certifi- 
cates of  Miss  Brotherton,  Mrs.  Schindle,  and  many  others,  are  true 
to  tlie  very  letter,  concerning  the  conduct  of  Smith  and  others. 

"J.  F.  O. 


«  Certijicate  of  Colonel  Carlos  Gove. 

'"Nauvoo,  September  3,  1842. 
" '  Having  been  personally  acquainted  with  Miss  Nancy  Rigdon,  for 
some  time,l  take  pleasure  in  saying  to  the  public,  that  I  verily  be- 
lieve Miss  Rigdon  a  lady  who  sustains  a  virtuous,  chaste,  moral,  and 
upright  character,  and  that  she  has  never  given  reason  for  any  one 
whereon  to  rest  a  suspicion  to  the  contrary,  —  and  that  the  affidavit 
of  Stephen  Markham  was  procured  for  purposes  well  known  to  the 
public,  —  and  I  also  believe  said  Markham  to  be  a  liar,  disturber  of 
the  peace,  and  what  may  justly  be  termed  a  loafer. 

" '  Carlos  Gove.' 


"  Certijicate  of  Sidney  Rigdon,  Esq. 

"  '  Nauvoo,  September  3,  1&12. 
"  '  Personally  appeared  before  me,  E.  Robinson,  a  Justice  of  the 
Peace,  within  and  for  the  county  of  Hancock,  and  State  of  Illinois, 
Sidney  Rigdon,  who,  being  duly  sworn,  deposeth  and  saith,  that  he 


252  HISTORY   OF    THE    SAINTS. 

is  personally  acquainted  with  Stephen  Markhain,  of  this  city,  and 
that  said  Markliain  is  not  to  be  believed ;  that  his  word  for  truth  and 
veracity  is  not  good  ;  that  he  could  not  believe  said  Markham  under 
oath,  aud  tlmt  he  did  on  a  certain  occasion  testify  under  oath  to  that 
which  deponent  knows  to  be  false,  and  he  verily  believes  said  Alark- 
ham  knew  the  same  to  be  false  while  testifying ;  and  further  this  de- 
ponent saith  not.  Sidney  Rigdon  ' 


"  '  Sworn  to,  this  third  day  of  September,  A.  D.  1842,  before  me, 

•  "  '  E.    ROBISSON,  J    P  ' 


"  Certificate  of  General  George  W.  Robinson. 

"  '  Nauvoo,  September  3,  1842. 

" '  Having  been  acquainted  with  Stephen  Markham,  of  the  city  of 
Nauvoo,  for  many  years,  I  can  safely  say  that  his  character  for  truth 
and  veracity  is  not  good,  and  that  I  could  not  believe  him  under 
oath  ;  and  that  I  am  personally  knowing  to  his  laying,  and  that  his 
character  in  general  is  that  of  a  loafer,  disturber  of  the  peace,  liar, 
&c. ;  and  that  he  did  come  into  the  house  of  Sidney  Rigdon,  as  sta 
ted  in  his  affidavit,  and  that  Dr.  Bennett  and  Miss  Rigdon  were 
present,  as  well  as  myself,  and  that  Miss  Rigdon  was  then  sick,  and 
Dr  John  C.  Bennett  was  the  attending  physician ;  and  I  do  further 
state  that  no  such  ccuversation  or  gcsfurcs  as  said  Markham  states, 
took  place  or  came  under  mj'  observation  ;  and  I  do  further  believe 
that  said  Markham  did  invent,  concoct,  and  put  in  circulation,  said 
stories  with  a  malicious  design  and  intent  to  injure  the  character  of 
IMiss  Rigdon,  and  more  particularly  for  the  use  of  the  Elders,  who 
are  going  out  preaching  to  rebut  Dr.  Bennett's  statements ;  and 
further  this  deponent  saith  not.  George  W.  Robikson.' 


"  '  Sworn  to  before  me,  L.  R.  Chaffin,  a  Justice  of  the  Peace, 
within  and  for  the  county  of  Hancock,  and  State  of  Illinois,  this 
ninth  daj' of  September,  1842.  Lewis  R.  Chaffin,  J.  P.' 


"  Certificate  of  Colonel  Henry  Marks. 

"  '  Having  been  acquainted  with  Miss  Nancy  Rigdon  for  nearly 
six  years,  I  can  say  that  she  is  a  lady  of  a  virtuous,  chaste,  and  up- 
right moral  character,  and  I  do  not  believe  she  ever  gave  any  occa- 
sion for  the  least  suspicion  to  the  contrary;  and  I  do  further  believe 
the  certificate  of  Stephen  Markham  to  be  false,  and  given  with  a  ma- 
licious design  and  intent  to  injure  the  character  of  INIiss  Rigdon  un- 
justly. Henrv  Marks. 
La  Habpe,  Illinois,  September  10,  1842.'" 


t<  i  1 


AMOURS    AND    CRIM.    CON.    CASES.  253 


AMOURS  AND   CRIMINAL   CONVERSATION   CASES. 


WIDOW   FULLER  — NOW   MRS.  WARREN. 

Mrs.  Warren  is  a  woman  of  ordinary  intellect,  and  not 
particularly  attractive  in  person,  though  far  from  being 
ugly.  She  is,  however,  very  licentious.  In  the  fall  of  1841, 
I  saw  her  and  Joe,  the  Prophet,  in  bed  together. 

"  Angels  and  ministers  of  grace  defend  us  — 
Be  thou  a  spirit  of  health  or  goblin  damned, 
Bring  with  thee  airs  from  heaven,  or  blasts  from  hell, 
Be  thy  intents  wicked  or  charitable. 
Thou  coinest  in  such  a  questionable  shape 
That  I  will  speak  to  thee. 
Save  rae  and  hover  o'er  me  with  your  wings. 
You  heavenly  guards  I  —  What  would  your  gracious  figure  ? ' 

This  was  at  the  time  alluded  to  by  Mrs.  Schindle,  wife  of 
Colonel  George  Schindle,  in  her  affidavit,  procured  by  that 
indefatigable  officer,  Colonel  Chauncey  L.  Higbee. 

"State  of  Illinois,  /  ^ 
J'.cDonouyli  County,  \'   ' 

"  Personally  appeared  before  me,  Abram  Fulkerson,  one  of  the 
Justices  of  the  Peace  in  and  for  said  county,  Melissa  Scliindle,  who, 
being  duly  sworn  according  to  law,  deposeth  and  saith  that  in  the 
fall  of  1841,  she  was  staying  one  night  with  the  widow  Fuller,  who 
has  recently  been  married  to  a  Mr.  Warren,  in  the  city  of  Nauvoo, 
and  that  Joseph  Smith  came  into  the  room  where  she  was  sleeping 
obout  ten  o'clock  at  night,  and  after  iimking  a  few  remarks,  came  to 
her  bedside,  and  asked  her  if  he  could  have  the  privilege  of  sleep- 
ing with  her.  She  immediately  replied.  No.  He,  on  the  receipt  of 
tlie  above  answer,  told  her  that  it  was  tiie  will  of  tlie  Lord  that  he 
sliould  have  illicit  intercourse  with  her,  and  that  he  never  proceeded 
to  do  any  thing  of  that  kind  wltfi  any  woman,  without  first  having 
tlie  will  of  tlie  Lord  on  the  subject ;  and  further  he  told  her  tliat  if 
she  would  consent  to  let  him  have  such  intercourse  with  her,  slie 
could  make  his  house  her  home  as  long  as  she  wished  to  do  so,  and 
thai  she  should  never  want  for  any  thing  it  was  in  liis  power  to  assist 
lier  to ;  but  she  would  not  consent  to  it.  He  then  told  her  that  if 
she  would  let  liim  sleep  with  her  that  night,  he  would  give  her  {xve 
dollars;  but  she  refused  all  his  propositions.  He  then  told  her  that 
slio  must  never  tell  of  his  propositions  to  her,  for  he  had  all  influ- 
ence in  that  place,  and  if  she  told  he  would  ruin  her  character,  and 
she  would  be  under  tlie  necessity  of  leaving.  He  tliQn  went  to  an 
adjoining  bed,  where  the  widow  Fuller  was  sleeping,  got  into  bed 


254  HISTORY   OP    THE    SAINTS. 

with  her,  and  lay  there  until  about  one  o'clock,  when  he  got  up,  bade 
them  good  night,  and  left  them ;  and  further  this  deponent  saith  not. 

her 
"  Melissa  ><i  Schindle, 
mark. 
*'  Subscribed  and  sworn  to  before  me,  this  2d  day  of  July,  1842. 

"  A.    FULKERSON,  J.  p." 


Joe,  did  you  offer  another  sacrifice  ?  If  not,  the  De- 
stroying Angel  will  come.  But  as  you  succeeded  with 
Mrs.  Fuller  that  night,  as  you  told  me,  — 

"  A  little  still  she  strove,  and  much  repented, 
And  whispering, '  I  will  ne'er  consent,'  cmisented,"  — 

that  may  take  off  the  curse.  Joe  says,  "  There  are  won- 
derful things  in  the  land  of  Ham,  and  terrible  things 
by  the  Red  Sea,"  but  that  he  has  no  desire  to  do  such 
things ;  he  only  does  it  to  show  that  he  is  a  man  as 
well  as  a  Prophet,  and  to  try  the  faith  of  the  Saints ! 
He  certainly  takes  a  very  delightful  way  to  shoio  himself 
a  man,  and  try  the  faith  of  the  Saints.  This  is  certainly 
several  degrees  beyond  the  milking  of  the  Gentiles  ! 
O  tempora !  O  mores !  When  the  Pontifical  Head  of 
the  Mormon  Harem  fails  in  one  case,  he  succeeds  at  least 
in  a  triplicate  ratio.  As  the  Harlot's  Paramour,  he 
takes  them  Coup-dc-Main.  His  manipulations  and  un- 
sophisticated affections  are  wonderful,  — 

"  But  always  without  malice  ;  if  he  warred 
Or  loved,  it  was  with  what  we  call  '  the  best 
Intentions,'  which  form  all  mankind's  trump  card., 
To  be  produced  when  brought  up  to  the  test. 
The  statesman,  hero,  harlot,  lawyer,  ward 
Off  each  attack,  when  people  are  in  quest 
Of  their  designs,  by  saying  they  meant  tcell; 
'Tis  pity  '  that  such  meaning  should  pave  hell.'  " 

If  the  devil  don't  get  Joe  Smith,  there  is  no  us«  in 
having  any  devil. 

"  Just  Heaven !  what  must  be  thy  look 

When  such  a  wretch  before  thee  stands, 
Unblushing,  with  thy  sacred  book. 

Turning  the  leaves  with  blood-stained  hands, 
And  wresting  from  its  page  sublime 
His  creed  of  lust,  and  hate,  and  crime  !  " 


AMOURS    AND    CRIM,    CON.    CASES.  255 

Mrs.  Schindle  is  a  woman  of  ordinary  capacity,  rather 
handsome,  firm  in  her  integrity,  and  inflexible  in  her  pur- 
poses. The  Prophet  opened  upon  this  lady  the  vial  of  the 
wrath  of  his  fornication,  in  order  to  invalidate  her  testi- 
mony ;  but  she  held  the  antidote,  and  has  signally  tri- 
umphed over  His  Holiness,  the  Prophet  and  Heir  Ap- 
parent to  the  Throne  of  His  Tartarean  Majesty. 
Col.  Schindle  should  teach  the  Monster  a  lesson  not  soon 
to  be  forgotten,  by  exhibiting  to  him  the  igneous . 

"  Who  would  be  free,  themselves  must  strike  the  blow  ! 
By  their  right  arm  the  conquest  must  be  wrought :  " — 

*'  A  word  to  the  wise  is  sufficient."  The  Mormon  Moun- 
tebank will  never  cease  his  folly,  brutality,  and  crime, 
until  he  is  made  to  feel,  in  propria  persona,  the  penalty  of 
violated  laws.  He  may  buy  up  many  whom  he  has  grossly 
insulted,  to  perjure  themselves  for  his  safety  and  deliver- 
ance, but  the  public  now  know  how  to  appreciate  Mormon 
statements  and  Mormon  testimony,  —  as  the  evidence  of 
a  murderous  and  prostituted  race,  the  dregs  and  outcasts 
of  society  ! 

"  God  quit  you  in  his  mercy  !     Hear  your  sentence  : 
You  have  conspired  against  my  quiet  person, 
Joined  loith  an  enemy,  and  feom  his  coffers 
Received  the  got,den  earnest  of  mv  death  ; 
Wherein  you  have  sold  your  chief  to  slaughter, 
His  friends  and  his  compeers  to  servitude. 
Touching  my  person,  I  seek  no  revenge ; 
But  I  my  nation's  safety  must  so  tender, 
Whose  ruin  you  have  sought,  that  to  her  laws 
I  do  deliver  you.     Go  therefore  hence. 
Poor  miserable  wretches,  to  your  death, 
The  taste  whereof  God  of  his  mercy  give 
You  patience  to  endure,  and  true  repentance 
Of  all  your  dire  offences." 


WIDOW    MILLER. 


Mrs.  Miller  is  one  of  Joe's  most  notorious  Cyprian 
Saints.  She  became  so  by  means  of  the  Inquisition,  be- 
fore whom  she  confessed  that  she  had  been  seduced  by  the 
Prophet,  under  an  assurance  that  the  proceeding  was  all 


256  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

correct,  and  in  accordance  with  the  will  and  express  per- 
mission of  the  Lord.  She  is  a  voluptuous  woman,  of  ordi- 
nary capacity,  black  hair  and  eyes,  round  features,  and 
free  and  lively  disposition. 

Joe  looked  upon  her,  and  thought,  — 

"  O  Pleasure !  you're  indeed  a  pleasant  thing, 
Although  one  must  be  damned  for  you,  no  doubt ; 
I  make  a  resolution  every  spring 
Of  reformation,  ere  the  year  run  out; 
But,  somehow,  this  my  vestal  vow  takes  wing, 
Yet  still,  I  trust,  it  may  be  kept  throughout : 
I'm  very  sorry,  very  much  ashamed, 
And  mean  next  winter  to  be  quite  reclaimed." 

But, 

"  Alas  !  the  love  of  women  !  it  is  known 
To  be  a  lovely  and  a  fearful  thing ; 
For  all  of  theirs  upon  that  die  is  thrown, 
And  if  'tis  lost,  life  hath  no  more  to  bring 
To  them  but  mockeries  of  the  past  alone, 
And  their  revenge  is  as  the  tiger's  spring. 
Deadly,  and  quick,  and  crushing;  yet  as  real 
Torture  is  theirs ;   what  they  inflict  they  feel." 

I  might  mention  a  vast  number  of  similar  cases  if  I  had 
space  in  this  Expose,  and  was  not  restrained  by  a  desire 
to  do  no  injury  to  Joe's  unfortunate  victims,  who  have 
already  suffered  more  than  death,  as  aptly  described  by 
the  poet,  — 

"  Poison  be  their  drink. 
Gall,  worse  than  gall,  the  daintiest  meat  they  taste ; 
Their  sweetest  shade  a  grove  of  cypress-trees, 
Their  sweetest  prospects  murdering  basilisks, 
Their  softest  touch  as  smart  as  lizard's  stings, 
Their  music  frightful  as  the  serpent's  hiss. 
And  boding  screech-owls  make  the  concert  full; 
All  the  foul  terrors  of  dark-seated  hell." 

But  I  desist. 

In  concluding  this  subject,  however,  I  will  semi-state 
two  or  more  cases,  among  the  vast  number,  where  Joe 
Smith  was  priyately  married  to  his  spiritual  wives  —  in  the 
case  of  Mrs.  A****  S****,  by  Apostle  Brigham  Young; 
and  in  that  of  Miss  L*****  B*****,  by  ^Elder  Joseph 
Bates  Noble.  Then  there  are  the  cases  of  Mrs.  B****, 
Mrs.  D*****,  Mrs.  S*******,  Mrs.  G*****,  Miss  B*****, 
etc.  etc. 


INCIDENTAL    REFLECTIONS.  257 

"  Ah,  Joseph  !  with  eyes  of  heavy  mind, 
I  see  thy  glory,  like  a  shooting  star, 
Fall  to  the  base  earth,  from  the  firmament ! 
Thy  sun  sits  weeping  in  the  lowly  west, 
Witnessing  storms  to  come,  woe,  and  unrest ; 
Thy  friends  are  fled,  to  wait  upon  thy  foes. 
And  crossly  to  thy  good  all  fortune  goes." 

This  thing  of  sending  off  the  Elders  to  preach,  in  order 
to  cloister  their  wives,  sisters,  and  daughters,  is  Latter 
JDai/-isM  with  a  vengeance  !  "  There  are  none  so  blind  as 
they  that  won't  see." 

"  Would  curses  kill,  as  doth  the  mandrake's  groan, 
I  would  invent  as  bitter  searching  terms. 
As  curst,  as  harsh,  and  horrible  to  hear, 
Delivered  strongly  through  my  fixed  teeth. 
With  full  as  many  signs  of  deadly  hate 
As  lean-faced  Envy  in  her  loathsome  cave. 
My  tongue  should  stumble  in  mine  earnest  words, 
Mine  eyes  should  sparkle  like  the  beaten  flint, 
Mine  hair  be  fixed  on  end  like  one  distract, 
Ay,  every  joint  should  seem  to  curse  and  ban ; 
And,  even  now  ni}'  burdened  heart  would  break, 
Should  I  not  curse  them 


It  appears  from  the  mass  of  evidence  in  this  Expose, 
that  the  Mormon  Hierarchy  are  guilty  of  infidelity,  deism, 
atheism;  lying,  deception,  blasphemy;  debauchery,  las- 
civiousness,  bestiality ;  madness,  fraud,  plunder;  larceny, 
burglary,  robbery,  perjury  ;  fornication,  adultery,  rape, 
incest ;  arson,  treason,  and  murder ;  and  they  have  out- 
heroded  Herod,  and  out-deviled  the  devil,  slandered  God 
Almighty,  Jesus  Christ,  and  the  holy  angels,  and  even 
the  devil  himself,  when  they  supposed  him  inimical  to 
their  plans  and  operations ;  and  it  is  not,  therefore,  to  be 
wondered  at,  that  they  should  pour  forth,  with  great  fury  and 
without  mixture,  the  vials  of  their  fierce  wrath  and  fiery 
indignation,  through  their  eastern  and  western  official 
organs,  upon  the  head  of  the  author  of  this  work  ;  but 
their  liquid  Tartarean  lava  and  barbed  arrows,  dipped  in  the 
quintessence  of  Mormon  ribaldry,  shall  be  turned,  by  the 
helmet  of  truth,  against  themselves — the  uncircumcised 
22* 


258  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

Philistines,  foul  fiends  of  iniquity,  and  devoted  worshippers 
of  Mammon.  '^  Cease,  vipers;  you  bite  a  file."  The 
Great  God  is  with  me,  and  will  plead  my  righteous  cause 
against  false  witnesses  and  persecuting  Jiends. 

"  Plead  my  cause,  O  Lord,  with  them  that  strive  with  me  :  fight 
against  them  that  fight  against  me.  Take  hold  of  shield  and  buck- 
ler, and  stand  up  for  my  help.  Draw  out  also  the  spear,  and  stop 
the  way  against  them  that  persecute  me  :  say  unto  my  soul,  I  am  thy 
salvation.  Let  them  be  confounded  and  put  to  shame  that  seek  after 
my  soul :  let  them  be  turned  back  and  brought  to  confusion  that  de- 
vise my  hurt.  Let  them  be  as  chaff  before  the  wind :  and  let  the 
angel  of  the  Lord  chase  them.  Let  their  way  be  dark  and  slippery : 
and  let  the  angel  of  the  Lord  persecute  them.  For  without  cause 
have  they  hid  for  me  their  net  in  a  pit  which  without  cause  they 
have  digged  for  my  soul.  Let  destruction  come  upon  him  at  una- 
wares ;  and  let  his  net  that  he  hath  hid  catch  himself:  into  that  very 
destruction  let  him  fall.  And  my  soul  shall  be  joyful  in  the  Lord  : 
it  shall  rejoice  in  his  salvation.  All  my  bones  shall  say,  Lord,  who 
is  like  unto  thee,  which  deliverest  the  poor  from  him  that  is  too  strong 
for  him,  yea,  the  poor  and  the  needy  from  him  that  spoileth  him  ^ 
False  witnesses  did  rise  up;  they  laid  to  my  charge  things  that 
I  knew  not.  They  rewarded  me  evil  for  good  to  the  spoiling  of  my 
soul.  But  as  for  me,  when  they  were  sick,  my  clothing  was  sack- 
cloth :  I  humbled  my  soul  with  fasting,  and  my  prayer  returned  into 
mine  own  bosom.  I  behaved  myself  as  though  he  had  been  my 
friend  or  brother :  I  bowed  down  heavily,  as  one  that  mourneth  for 
his  mother.  But  in  mine  adversity  they  rejoiced,  and  gathered 
themselves  together :  yea,  the  abjects  gathered  themselves  together 
against  me,  and  I  knew  it  not ;  they  did  tear  me,  and  ceased  not : 
Avith  hypocritical  mockers  in  feasts,  they  gnaslied  upon  me  with 
their  teeth.  Lord,  how  long  wilt  tliou  look  on .'  rescue  my  soul 
from  their  destructions,  my  darling  from  the  lions.  I  will  give  thee 
thanks  in  the  great  congregation  :  I  will  praise  thee  among  much 
people.  Let  not  them  that  are  mine  enemies  wrongfully  rejoice 
over  me  :  neither  let  them  wink  with  the  eye  that  hate  me  withou* 
a  cause.  For  they  speak  not  peace  :  but  they  devise  deceitful  mat- 
ters against  them  that  are  quiet  in  the  land.  Yea,  they  opened  their 
mouth  wide  against  me,  and  said.  Aha,  aha !  our  eye  hath  seen  it. 
This  thou  hast  seen,  O  Lord  :  keep  not  silence.  O  Lord,  be  not 
far  from  me.  Stir  up  thyself,  and  awake  to  my  judgment,  even  unto 
my  cause,  my  God,  and  my  Lord.  Judge  me,  O  Lord  my  God, 
according  to  thy  righteousness  ;  and  let  them  not  rejoice  over  me 
Let  them  not  say  in  their  hearts,  Ah,  so  would  we  have  it :  let  them 
not  say.  We  have  swallowed  him  up.  Let  them  be  ashamed  and 
brought  to  confusion  together  that  rejoice  at  my  hurt :  let  them  be 
clothed  with  shame  and  dishonor  that  magnify  themselves  against 
me.  Let  them  shout  for  joy,  and  be  glad,  that  favor  my  righteous 
cause :  yea,  let  them  say  continually.  Let  the  Lord  be  magnified, 
which  hath  pleasure  in  the  prosperity  of  his  servant.  And  my 
tongue  shall  speak  of  thy  righteousness  and  of  thy  praise  all  the  day 
long."  —  Ps.  XXXV. 


INCIDENTAL    REFLECTIONS.  259 

Though  the  Prophet  buys  off,  with  a  heavy  price, 
the  Saints  and  Jacks  to  swear  against  me,  though  he  buys 
up  all  with  promises  of  gold  and  glory,  I'll  stand  alone 
with  shield  and  rapier,  and  fight  the  fearful  odds  until  I'm 
vanquished,  or  crowned  a  victor  in  the  battle-field ;  but, 
looking  through  the  vista  of  time,  I  see  a  mighty  host, 
myriads,  coming  to  the  rescue ;  and  still  they  come ;  the 
air  darkens  with  the  gathering  throng;  they  come  "to 
the  help  of  the  Lord,  to  the  help  of  the  Lord  against  the 
mighty."  The  noble  and  brave  General  George  W.  Rob- 
inson has  issued  his  bull  excommunicating  the  Mormon 
Church  from  his  fellowship.  His  voice  is  heard  in  the 
west  like  the  thunderings  of  Sinai !  The  proffered  gold 
could  not  tempt  him  from  the  path  of  truth,  and  he  now 
cries,  "  God  and  Liberty  !  1 "  All  who  have  the  moral 
courage  will  follow  in  the  train,  until  the  Mormon  Babel 
shall  become  a  solitary,  and  its  Baal  a  wandering  vaga- 
bond! Those  who  cannot  be  bought  with  gold  and  glory 
will  now  abjure  the  Dauphin  Prince  of  hell,  (the  Holy 
Joe,)  and  celebr.ate  his  hegira  as  an  epoch  of  returning 
sanity ! 

Hear  the  impious  Prophet  speak. 

From  the  Boston  Daily  Mail  of  October  7, 1842. 

"  A  VOICE  FROM  JOE   SMITH'S  HIDING-PLACE. 

"  Tlie  following  letter  from  Joe  Smith,  published  in  the  Times 
and  Seasons,  the  Mormon  paper  at  Nauvoo,  shows  that  the  where- 
abouts of  the  miserable  Impostor  is  still  unknown  to  the  world.  It 
is  rather  inglorious  for  a  man  who  claims  the  power  of  working 
miracles,  thus  to  crawl  into  his  hole  with  fear.  But  his  letter  is  a 
rich    one,  for  all   that.     Joe's  '  spiritual   wives '  must   be  .in  great 

tribulation. 

«  '  September  i ,  1842. 

<' '  To  all  the  Saints  in  Nauvoo : 

"  '  Forasmuch  as  the  Lord  has  revealed  unto  me  that 
my  enemies,  both  of  Missouri  and  this  State,  were  again  on  the  pur- 
suit of  me  ;  and  inasmuch  as  they  pursue  me  without  cause,  and  have 
not  the  least  shadow  or  coloring  of  justice  or  right  on  tlioir  side,  m 
tlie  setting  up  of  their  prosecutions  against  me  ;  and  inasnmch  as  their 
pretensions  are  all  founded  in  falsehood,  of  the  blackest  dye,  I  have 
thought  it  expedient,  and  wisdom  in  me,  to  leave  the  place  for  a 
short^  season,  for  my  own  safety  and  the  safety  of  this  people.  I 
would  say  to  all  those  with  whom  I  have  business,  that  I  have  left 
my  affairs  with  agents  and  clerks,  who  will  transact  all  buainesa  in 


260  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

a  prompt  and  proper  manner ;  and  will  see  that  all  my  debts  are 
cancelled  in  due  time,  by  turning  out  property,  or  otherwise  as  the 
case  may  require,  or  as  the  circumstances  may  admit  of.  Wlien  I 
learn  that  the  storm  is  fully  blown  over,  then  I  will  return  to  you 
again. 

"  '  And  as  for  the  perils  which  I  am  called  to  pass  through,  they 
seem  but  a  small  thing  to  me,  as  the  envy  and  wrath  of  man  have 
been  my  common  lot  all  the  days  of  my  life  ;  and  for  what  cause,  it 
seems  mysterious,  unless  I  was  ordained  from  before  the  foundation 
of  the  world,  for. some  good  end,  or  bad,  as  you  may  choose  to  call 
it.  Judge  ye  for  yourselves.  God  knoweth  all  these  things, 
whether  it  be  good  or  bad.  But  nevertheless,  deep  water  is  what  I 
am  wont  to  swim  in  ;  it  all  has  become  a  second  nature  to  me.  And 
I  feel,  like  Paul,  to  glory  in  tribulation,  for  to  this  day  has  the  God 
of  my  fathers  delivered  me  out  of  them  all,  and  will  deliver  me 
henceforth  ;  for  behold,  and  lo,  I  shall  triumpii  over  all  my  enemies, 
for  the  Lord  God  hath  spoken  it. 

"  '  Let  all  the  Saints  rejoice,  therefore,  and  be  exceeding  glad,  for 
Israel's  God  is  their  God;  and  he  will  mete  out  a  just  recompense 
of  reward  upon  the  heads  of  all  your  oppressors. 

'"  And  again,  verily  thussaith  the  Lord,  Let  the  work  of  my  Tem- 
ple, and  all  the  works  which  I  have  appointed  unto  you,  be  continued 
on, and  not  cease;  and  let  your  diligence,  and  your  perseverance, 
and  patience,  and  your  works  be  redoubled ;  and  you  shall  in  no 
wise  lose  your  reward,  saith  the  Lord  of  Hosts.  And  if  they  perse- 
cute, so  persecuted  they  the  Prophets,  and  righteous  men  that  were 
before  you.     For  all  this  there  is  a  reward  in  heaven. 

" '  And  again  I  give  unto  you  a  word  in  relation  to  the  baptism  for 
your  dead.  Verily,  thus  saith  the  Lord  unto  you  concerning  your 
dead.  When  any  of  you  are  baptized  for  your  dead,  let  there  be  a 
Recorder  ;  and  let  him  be  eye-witness  of  your  baptisms  ;  let  hini 
hear  with  his  ears,  that  he  may  testify  of  a  truth,  saitli  the  Lord  ; 
that  in  all  j'our  recordings,  it  may  be  recorded  in  huaven ;  that 
whatsoever  3-ou  bind  on  earth,  may  be  bound  in  heaven ;  what- 
soever you  loose  on  earth,  may  be  loosed  in  heaven  ;  lor  I  am  about 
to  restore  many  things  to  the  earth,  pertaining  to  the  priesthood, 
Baith  tiie  Lord  of  Hosts. 

"  '  And  again.  Let  all  the  records  be  had  in  order,  that  they  may 
be  put  in  the  archives  of  my  Holy  Temple,  to  be  held  in  remem- 
brance from  generation  to  generation,  saith  the  Lord  of  Hosts. 

'' '  I  will  say  to  all  the  Saints,  that  I  desired,  with  exceeding  great 
desire,  to  have  addressed  them  from  tlie  stand,  on  the  subject  of  bap- 
tism for  the  dead,  on  the  following  Sabbath.  But  inasmuch  as  it  is 
out  of  my  power  to  do  so,  I  will  write  the  word  of  the  Lord  from 
time  to  time,  on  that  subject,  and  send  it  you  by  mail,  as  well  as 
many  other  things. 

"  '  I  now  close  my  letter  for  the  present,  for  the  want  of  more  time , 
for  the  enemy  is  on  the  alert,  and  as  the  Savior  said,  The  prince  of 
this  world  comcth,  but  he  hath  nothing  in  me. 

"  '  Behold  my  prayer  to  God  is,  that  you  all  may  be  saved.  And 
I  subscribe  myself  your  servant  in  tlie  Lord,  Prophet  and  Seer  of  the 
Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter  Day  Saints. 

"  'Joseph  Smith.'  " 


INCIDENTAL   KEFLECTIONS.  •  281 


From  Colonel  F.  M.  Highee  to  the  Author. 


"  General  Be.vsett 

"Sir,— 


"  Nad  TOO,  August  16, 1842. 


"  Tlie  Mormoa  confusion  is  great;  Joe  Smith  has 
run  away,  and  the  sherifr's  are  still  here  watching  for  him.  Every- 
one is  struck  with  consternation  and  dismay  ;"  trouble  has  seized 
upon  every  breast.  Joe's  strength  is  delivered  into  captivity,  and 
his  glory  into  tiie  hands  of  his  enemies;  and  the  days  of  liis  glory 
are  as  if  they  had  never  been.  Some  say  Jce  has  gone  to  Texas, 
some  to  Canada,  some  to  Santa  Fe,  and  some  say  to  heaven ; 
others  tliink  he  is  really  translated ;  and,  in  fact,  I  am  led  to  con- 
clude that  he  is  translated  from  earth  to  h*^"^.  His  place  is  no  more 
on  the  banks  of  the  pleasant  Mississippi ;  he  will  have  to  seek  safety 
in  some  crevice  of  the  Hfemus  Mountains,  or  enjoy  tlie  comfortable 
pursuits  of  a  Merrill,  a  Rathbun,  or  an  Edwards;  wiiich,  if  Mis- 
souri should  fail  to  furnish  him,  undoubtedly  Illinois  will  not. 

"  You  had  better  hasten  your  march  here,  for  all  are  looking  to 
you  —  as  Israel  did  to  Joshua  the  son  of  Nun  —  for  a  great  and  ener- 
getic movement. 

"  Robinson  has  come  out,  as  strong  as  thunder,  in  the  Sangamo 
Journal,  and  is  continuing  it.  I  have  all  sorts  of  times,  once  in  a 
while,  with  the  Saints,  I  assure  you.  Rigdon  and  Pratt  are  the 
same.  Mrs.  Pratt  is  going  to  give  her  certificate  ;  and  if  Mrs.  White 
can  get  aioaij,  she  will  give  a  full  history  of  the  concern.  Wont  it 
be  great.'  Statements  have  been  forced  from  several ;  you  have 
seen  mine  ;  but,  great  God !  that's  all  from  this  child  !  Go  it  strong, 
Doc,  now  or  never.  I  have  just  been  to  see  JNIrs.  White.  Great 
Scotland!  what  a  tale  she  can  tell  !  You  know,  Doc.  O!  how  the 
'  icorthics  '  curse  you  !  They  curse  the  day  of  your  birth,  and  more 
than  that. 

"  Tlie  Governor  will  order  a  force  here  to  guard  the  diggings  for  a 
while.  Joe  and  Porter  were  taken  by  the  authority  of  the  executive 
writ,  and  released  on  a  Habeas  Corpus.  The  inglorious  ordinance, 
passed  for  the  occasion,  is  published  in  '  The  Wasp '  of  the  13tli  of 
August.  Joe  is  in  the  Islands,  and  Hyrum  has  to  act  as  Mayor,  as 
you  will  see.  --— 

"  Miss  Eliza  Rigdon  (God  save  her  soul,  for  she  is  a  good  girl) 
[yes,  one  of  the  best  that  this  world  ever  saw]  is  at  the  point  of  death ; 
yes,  I  think  she  is  dying.  [By  more  recent  letters  I  learn  she  has 
since  recovered  ;  and  may  that  pious  Christian  still  continue  to  be 
a  bright  ornament  to  her  kind  father's  house.] 

"You  have  friends  here  truer  than  death;  just  as  they  should 
be.    *     *     * 

"  Your  friend  and  well-wisher, 

under  all  circumstances,  and  at  all  times, 

"Francis  M.  Higbee.' 


263  HISTORt   OF   THE   SAINTS. 

From  Colonel  C.  L.  Higbee  to  the  Author. 

"  Nautoo,  August  14, 1842. 
'•General  Bennett  : 

"Dear  Sir,— 

"  Doctor  Weld  favored  me  with  the  perusal  of  your  letter 
of  July  19;  and  why  you  have  not  written  me  is  entirely  a  mys- 
tery. I  cannot  believe,  for  a  moment,  that  you  have  forgotten 
a  person  who  has  stood  by  you  as  I  have  done,  both  in  prosperity 
and  exile;  for  I  assure  you.  Doctor,  that  I  shall  never  forsake 
or  forget  you,  nor  the  scenes  through  which  we  have  passed  to- 
gether. There  is  quite  a  rijt  up  in  our  city  this  week.  A  demand 
has  been  made  by  Governor  Reynolds,  of  Missouri,  on  the  affidavit 
of  Ex-Governor  Boggs,  for  O.  F.  Rockwell  and  Joseph  Smith;  on 
which  demand  Governor  Carlin,  last  Saturday,  issued  his  writ. 
On  Monday,  the  officers  (Thomas  C.  King  and  James  M.  Pitman) 
[two  excellent  ministerial  officers]  arrived  in  this  city.  Rockwell 
and  Joe  surrendered  themselves,  and  immediately  applied  to  the 
Municipal  Court  for  a  writ  of  Habeas  Corpus.  The  writ  was  issued 
forthwith,  and  immediately  served  by  the  Marshal  on  King  and 
Pitman,  who  refused  to  give  up  the  prisoners,  by  disputing  the 
legality  of  the  writ,  as  any  men  who  were  determined  to  do  "their 
duty  would  do.  They  agreed  to  settle  the  matter,  however,  by  Joe's 
making  some  masonic  pledges  to  the  officers  to  deliver  himself  and 
Rockwell  up  at  any  time  when  called  for.  The  officers  returned  to 
Quincy  to  take  advice  as  to  the  legality  of  the  writ  of  Habeas  Cor 
pus  ;  but  before  they  had  time  to  return,  the  prisoners  sloped.  Pit 
man  is  here  watching,  and  King  has  returned  to  Warsaw  to  publish 
them.  Hyrum  Smith  stated  to-day,  in  the  stand,  that  Rockwell 
and  Joe  had  gone  to  Washington  city,  and  were  going  from  thence 
to  England ;  but  it  is  my  opinion  that  they  are  here  in  the  neighbor- 
hood. There  is  a  great  deal  of  confusion  here  amongst  the  Saints. 
Some  are  for  going  to  the  Oregon  Territory,  and  some^one  place  and 
some  another.  Tlie  Prophet  prophesied  on  the  stand,  about  four 
weeks  since,  that  «  Bennett  never  would  have  influence  enough  to 
get  a  demand  made  for  him  ; '  but,  alas  !  he  has,  at  this  late  hour, 
realized  his  mistake.  Eliza  Rigdon  is  said  to  be  dying.  [She  is  one 
of  the  most  devoutly  pious  girls  in  the  world,  and  I  am  truly  happy 
to  learn,  by  more  recent  letters,  that  she  is  fast  recovering.] 

"  Your  friends  here  are  firm,  and  desire  to  see  you  very  much. 
Your  presence  is  now  required  in  the  west,  and  I  advise  you  to 
come  immediately  on.  Your  presence  would  give  fresh  courage  to 
your  friends,  and  a  zest  to  the  whole  proceedings  that  could  not  be 
otherwise  inspired.     'Napoleon  should  be  in  the  field.' 

"  I  have  scrupulously  attended  to  the  business,  which  you  confided 
to  my  care.  All  the  friends  desire  to  be  respectfully  remembered 
to  you.  "  Your  friend, 

"  Chauncey  L.  Higbee." 

I  shall  be  in  Independence,  Jackson  county,  Missouri, 
as  soon  as  possible,  to  put  the  ball  in  motion;  (to  which 


DAUGHTER   OF    ZION.  265 

place  my  friends  will  hereafter  direct  their  communica- 
tions to  me;)  and  if  the  war  must  be  carried  to  the  knife, 
and  the  knife  to  the  hilt,  the  sons  of  thunder  will  drive  it 
through.  The  eyes  of  a  Boggs  will  never  slumber  nor 
sleep,  until  the  rod  of  Aaron  divides  the  toatcrs,  and  the 
supremacy  of  the  Constitution  and  the  laws  is  acknowl- 
edged in  the  land,  and  violence  and  misrule  hide  their 
hydra  head  ;  and  I  shall  hold  the  racier  of  justice  in  my 
right  hand,  and  my  left  arm  shall  bear  the  shield  of  truth, 
until  I  bruise  the  Serpent's  head. 


DAUGHTER  OF  ZION. 

This  is  a  secret  society  of  many  years'  standing,  and 
was  first  formed  in  Missouri :  the  great  majority  of  the 
members  are  among  the  ^^  huge  jjciws"  of  the  Mormons, 
and  they  compose  as  pretty  a  set  of  ruffians  as  can  be  found 
in  Christendom  or  elsewhere.  The  society  was  instituted  for 
the  purpose  of  driving  out  from  the  Holy  I^and,  thrir  carthhj 
paradise,  in  Missouri,  all  apostates  or  dissenters  from  the 
Mormon  faith.  It  was,  theVefore,  at  first  called  the  "  Big 
Fan,"  inasmuch  as  it  fanned  out  the  chaff  from  the  wheat. 
This  name,  however,  did  not  seem  sufficiently  dignified  for 
so  holy  a  body,  and  was  soon  set  aside  for  a  scriptural 
appellation  ;  they  were  called  the  "  Brother  of  Gideon;" 
but  the  rationale  of  this  title  I  have  never  been  able  to  dis- 
cover. They  are  usually  styled  Danites,  and  sometimes 
Daughter  of  Zion,  for  the  origin  of  which  names,  see  Micah 
iv.  13;  read  the  whole  chapter;  also  Judges  xvii.  and 
xviii. 

The  following  is  the  constitution  of  this  society  :  — 

"■  Whereas,  in  all  bodies  laws  are  necessary  for  the  permanency, 
safety,  and  well-being  of  society,  we,  the  members  of  the  society  of 
the  Daughter  of  Zion,  do  agree  to  regulate  ourselves  under  such 
laws  as,  in  righteousness,  shall  be  deemed  necessary  for  the  preser- 
vation of  our  holy  religion,  and  of  our  most  sacred  rights,  and  of  the 
rights  of  our  wives  and  children.  But  to  be  explicit  on  the  subject, 
it  is  especially  our  object  to  support  and  defend  tiio  rights  conferred 
on  us  by  our  venerable  sires,  who  purchased  them  with  the  pledges 
23 


266  '       HISTORY  or  the  saints. 

of  their  lives,  their  fortunes,  and  tlieir  sacred  honors.  And  now,  to 
prove  ourselves  worthy  of  the  liberty  conferred  on  us  b}'  them,  in 
the  providence  of  God,  we  do  agree  to  be  governed  by  such  laws  as 
shall  perpetuate  these  high  privileges,  of  which  we  know  ourselves 
to  be  the  rightful  possessors,  and  of  which  privileges  wicked  and  de- 
signing men  have  tried  to  deprive  us,  by  all  manner  of  evil,  and  that 
purely  in  consequence  of  the  tenacity  we  have  manifested  in  the 
discharge  of  our  duty  towards  our  God,  wlio  had  given  us  those 
rights  and  privileges,  and  a  right  in  common  with  others,  to  dwell 
on  tliis  land.  But  we,  not  having  the  privileges  of  others  allowed 
unto  us,  have  determined,  like  imto  our  fathers,  to  resist  tyranny, 
wliether  it  be  in  kings  or  in  the  people.  It  is  all  alike  unto  us. 
Our  rights  we  must  have,  and  our  rights  we  shall  have,  in  the  name 
of  Israefs  God. 

"Art.  1.  All  power  belongs  originally  and  legitimately  to  the 
people,  and  they  have  a  right  to  dispose  of  it  as  they  shall  deem  fit; 
hut,  as  it  is  inconvenient  and  impossible  to  convene  the  people  in  all 
cases,  the  legislative  powers  have  been  given  by  them,  from  time  to 
time,  into  the  hands  of  a  representation  composed  of  delegates  from 
the  people  themselves.  This  is  and  has  been  the  law,  both  in  civil 
and  religious  bodies,  and  is  the  true  principle. 

"  Art.  2.  The  executive  power  shall  be  vested  in  the  President 
of  the  icholc  Church,  and  his  Cmauillors. 

"  Art.  3.  The  legislative  powers  shall  reside  in  the  President  and 
his  Councillors  together,  and  with  the  Generals  and  Colonels  oi  the 
society.     By  them  all  laws  shall  be  made  regulating  the  society. 

"  Art.  4.  All  offices  shall  be  during  life  and  good  behavior,  or  to 
be  regulated  by  the  law  of  God. 

"  Art.  5.  TJie  society  reserves  the  power  of  electing  its  own 
officers,  with  the  exception  of  the  Aids  and  Clerks  which  the  officers 
may  need  in  their  various  stations;  the  nomination  to  go  from  the 
Presidency  to  his  second,  and  from  the  second  to  the  third  in  rank, 
and  so  down  tlirough  all  the  various  grades.  Each  branch  or  depart- 
ment retains  the  power  of  electing  its  own  particular  officers. 

'•  Art.  6.  Punishment  shall  be  administered  to  the  guihy  in  accord- 
ance to  the  offence  ;  and  no  member  shall  be  punished  without 
law,  or  by  any  others  than  those  appointed  by  law  for  that  purpose. 
The  legislature  shall  have  power  to  make  laws  regulating  punish- 
ments, as,  in  their  judgments,  shall  be  wisdom  and  righteousness. 

'■  Art.  7.  There  shall  be  a  Secretary,  whose  business  it  sliall  bo  to 
keep  all  the  legislative  records  of  the  society  ;  also  to  keep  a  register 
of  the  names  of  every  member  of  the  society;  also  the  rank  of  the 
officers.  He  shall  also  communicate  the  laws  to  the  Generals,  as 
directed  by  laws  made  for  the  regulation  of  such  business  by  the 
legislature. 

"Art.  8.  All  officers  shall  be  subject  to  the  commands  of  the 
Captain- General,  given  through  the  Secretary  of  War;  and  so  all 
officers  shall  be  subject  to  their  superiors  in  rank,  according  to  laws 
made  for  that  purpose." 

The  oath  by  which  the  Danites  were  bound  in  jMissouri, 
is  as  follows  :  — 


DAUGHTER    OF    ZION.  267 

"  In  tlie  name  of  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of  God,  I  do  solemnly 
obligate  myself  ever  to  conceal,  and  never  to  reveal,  the  secret  pur- 
poses of  this  society,  called  the  Daughter  of  Zion.  Should  I  ever 
do  the  same,  I  hold  my  life  as  the  forfeiture." 

Tills  obligation  was,  however,  subsequently  altered,  in  a 
secret  council  of  the  Inquisition  at  Nauvoo,  so  as  to  read,  — 

"In  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of  God,  I  do  solemnly 
obliarate  myself  ever  to  regard  the  Propjiet,  and  First  Presidency  of 
the  Churcli  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter  Uay  Saints,  as  tlie  Supreme 
Head  of  the  Church  on  Earth,  and  to  obey  them  in  all  things  the 
same  as  the  Supreme  God;  that  I  will  stand  by  my  brethren  in 
danger  or  difficulty,  and  will  uphold  the  Presidency,  right  or  wrong  : 
and  tliat  I  will  ever  conceal,  and  never  reveal,  the  secret  purposes 
of  tliis  society,  called  the  Daughter  of  Zion.  Should  I  ever  do  the 
same,  I  liold  my  life  as  the  forieiture,  in  a  caldron  of  boiling  oil." 

Those  who  belonged  to  the  society  when  under  its  old 
organization,  but  refused  to  take  the  new  oath,  were, 
together  with  those  whose  fidelity  was  doubtful,  absolved 
from  the  Missouri  obligation.  But  to  the  faithful  of  the 
band,  and  to  about  twelve  hundred  new  members,  the 
Nauvoo  oath  was  administered  by  Joe  Smith  in  person. 
While  the  candidate  was  yet  kneeling  before  the  altar, 
after  having  taken  the  oath,  the  Holy  Prophet,  assisted  by 
Hyrum  Smith,  the  Patriarch  of  the  Church,  and  George 
Miller,  the  President  of  the  High  Priest's  Quorum,  ap- 
proached, and  said,  — 

'■  In  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of  God,  and  by  the  author- 
ity of  the  Holy  Priesthood,  we,  the  First  President,  Patriarch,  and 
liigh  Priest,  of  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter  Day  Saints, 
representing  the  First,  Second,  and  Third  Gods  in  Heaven, —  the 
Father,  tlie  Son,  and  the  Holy  Ghost,  —  do  now  anoint  you  wiLli 
holy,  consecrated  oil,  and  by  the  imposition  of  our  hands,  do  ordain, 
consecrate,  and  set  you  apart,  for  the  holy  calling,  whereunto  you 
are  called  ;  that  you  may  consecrate  tlie  riches  of  the  Gentiles  to  the 
House  of  Israel,  bring  swift  destruction  upon  apostate  sinners,  and 
execute  the  decrees  of  Heaven,  without  fear  of  what  man  can  do 
unto  3"ou.     So  mote  it  be.     Amen." 

It  will  be  perceived  from  the  above,  that  the  Danites  are 
solemnly  bound,  under  penalty  of  forfeiting  their  lives  in  a 
horrid  manner,  to  obey  and  execute  the  decrees  of  the 
Mormon  leaders,  whether  the  latter  are  right  or  wrong  1 
No  matter  if  they  are  commanded  to  commit  treason,  mur- 
der, arson,  burglary,  perjury,  or  any  crime  whatever;  do  it 


268  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

they  must,  or  violate  their  oath,  and  forfeit,  in  consequence, 
their  life.  And,  in  fact,  all  these  crimes  have  been  com- 
mitted by  them,  in  many  instances,  no  doubt,  under  the 
impression  that  they  were  doing  God  service  !  So  grossly 
has  the  Prophet  deluded  his  miserable  followers  ! 

That  they  make  no  scruple  whatever  to  commit  perjury, 
when  deemed  requisite  for  the  welfare  of  their  Church,  or 
of  its  priests  and  chief  men,  is  abundantly  proved,  not  only 
by  the  atrocious  falsehoods  they  have  propagated  about 
me,  —  falsehoods  so  gross  as  to  be  almost  unworthy  of 
notice  or  refutation,  —  but  by  the  testimony  given  before 
Judge  King,  of  Missouri,  and  published  in  1841,  by  order 
of  the  General  Assembly  of  that  State;  which  testimony 
affords  ample  proof,  that  the  Mormons  of  the  Danite  Order 
had  no  hesitation  in  committing  the  most  barefaced  perju- 
ries, when  they  could  thereby  advance  the  interests  of  their 
rulers.  This  is  particularly  shown  in  the  testimony  of 
Colonel  George  M.  Hinkle,  T.  C.  Burch,  Esq.,  Fanny 
Brewer,  and  others,  which  I  have  copied  into  tliis  work. 

Now,  what  material  difference  is  there  between  this 
Joseph  Smith  and  the  leader  of  a  band  of  highway  rob- 
bers, or  the  captain  of  a  crew  of  pirates  ?  Does  not  the 
Mormon  deserve  more  utter  condemnation  than  either  the 
bandit  or  the  buccaneer,  inasmuch  as  his  wickedness  is 
upon  a  more  extensive  scale,  and  is  perpetrated  in  the 
name  of  religion  and  of  the  Most  High  God,  thus  bias- 
pheming  and  desecrating  the  holiest  names  and  objects  to 
the  vilest  and  most  atrocious  purposes? 

The  number  of  Danites  is  now  about  two  thousand,  or 
two  thousand  five  hundred,  and,  as  I  before  observed,  they 
are  drawn  from  the  "  huge  paws"  of  the  Mormon  Church. 


DESTROYING    ANGEL. 

From  the  elite  of  the  Danites,  or  Daughter  of  Zion, 
twelve  men  are  selected,  who  are  called  Destructives ,  or 
Destroying  Angel,  and  sometimes  Flying  Angel.     Their 


DESTROYING    ANGEL.  271 

duty  is  to  act  as  spies,  and  watch  the  movements  of  all 
persons,  both  Saints  and  Gentiles,  and  to  repoi't  all  that 
they  hear  and  observe  to  the  First  Presidency,  as  circum- 
stances may  require. 

This  band  was  at  first  called  only  "Destructives,"  or 
" Destructionists,"  and  their  leader  or  captain  the  "De- 
stroying Angel ; "  but  in  time,  the  latter  appellation  was 
given  to  the  whole  body.  They  are  bound  by  the  fol- 
lowing oath  :  — 

'•  In  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of  God,  I  do  covenant  and 
agree  to  support  the  First  Presidency  of  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ 
of  Latter  Day  Saints,  in  all  things,  right  or  wronff;  I  will  faithfully 
guard  them,  and  report  to  them  the  acts  of  all  men,  as  far  as  in  my 
power  lies ;  I  will  assist  in  executing  all  the  decrees  of  the  First 
President,  Patriarch  or  President  of  tlie  Twelve ;  and  that  I  will 
cause  all  who  speak  evil  of  the  Presidency,  or  Heads  of  the  Ciiurcli, 
to  die  the  death  of  dissenters  and  apostates,  unless  tliey  speedily 
confess  and  repent;  for  pestilence, persecution,  and  death,  shall  fol- 
low the  enemies  of  Zion.  I  will  be  a  swift  herald  of  salvation,  and 
messenger  of  peace  to  the  Saints,  and  I  will  never  make  known  the 
secret  purposes  of  this  society,  called  the  Destroving  Angel,  my 
life  being  tlie  forfeiture  in  a  fire  of  burning  tar  and  brimstone.  So 
help  me  God,  and  keep  me  steadfast." 

The  members  of  this  band,  when  engaged  in  the  execu- 
tion of  any  important  decree,  are  clothed  in  female  apparel, 
wearing  a  snow-white  robe  and  a  scarlet  girdle,  '"his  is 
the  band  alluded  to  by  Judge  King  in  his  communication 
to  the  Executive  of  Missouri,  and  by  Thomas  B.  Marsh 
and  others.  They  are  bound  to  consecrate  the  riches  of 
the  Gentiles  to  the  house  of  Israel,  which,  in  plain  English, 
means,  to  rob  and  plunder  the  people  who  are  not  Mor- 
mons, and  appropriate  the  spoils  to  the  use  of  the  Church. 
They  also  pledge  themselves  to  poison  the  wells  and  the 
food  and  drink  of  dissenters,  apostates,  and  all  enemies  of 
Zion,  and  to  murder  those  who  refuse  to  tithe  or  contribute 
the  tenth  part  of  their  property  to  the  use  of  the  Church, 
and,  in  short,  to  destroy  by  fire  and  sword  all  the  enemies 
of  Mormonism,  and  to  assist  in  all  things  in  building 
up  the  kingdom  spoken  of  by  the  prophet  Daniel. 

Tliese  Destructives,  in  their  capacities  of  spies  and  in- 
formers, are  of  great  service  to  the  Prophet,  and  assist 
materially  in  extending  and  confirming  his  influence  over 
the  Mormons.  They  generally  call  upon  him  every  morn- 
ing, and  make  a  detailed  report  of  the  sayings  and  doings 


272  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

of  various  persons  in  Nauvoo,  or  elsewhere,  as  the  Prophet 
may  direct  them.  These  reports  are  listened  to  with  great 
attention  by  Holy  Joe,  and  carefully  treasured  up  for 
future  use.  When  he  is  desirous  of  making  an  impression 
on  any  individual  of  his  followers,  he  turns  to  the  partic- 
ulars of  that  individual's  conduct  and  conversation,  com- 
municated by  the  spies,  calls  upon  him  at  a  convenient 
opportunity,  and  gravely  informs  him  that  he  has  received 
from  the  Lord  a  revelation  respecting  him.  The  person 
thus  addressed  is,  of  course,  not  a  little  startled  by  this  ex- 
traordinary announcement,  and  earnestly  requests  to  be 
informed  of  the  nature  of  the  facts  so  graciously  com- 
municated by  the  Lord.  Joe  then,  with  all  due  solemnity, 
proceeds  to  state  that  the  Angel  of  the  Lord  had  come 
down  and  told  him,  that  on  such  and  such  a  day,  brother 
Johnson,  or  Thompson,  or  whatever  the  name  may  be,  had, 
at  such  or  such  a  place,  done  and  said  so  and  so.  Brother 
Johnson  of  course  opens  his  eyes  very  wide,  at  this  revela- 
tion, and  is  more  firmly  than  ever  convinced  that  Smith  is 
the  Prophet  of  the  Lord  !  "  For  how  else,"  reasons  he, 
"  could  he  know  so  particularly  what  I  have  been  doing, 
when  I  am  ^uite  sure  he  was  not  within  a  mile  of  me  ?  " 
Thus  deluded,  brother  Johnson  takes  good  care  to  com- 
municate his  e?^traordinary  case  to  his  cronies,  and  the 
result  is  a  general  persuasion  among  the  mass  of  the  Mor- 
mons, that  Joe  Smith  is  not  far  from  omniscient,  and  that 
it  is  safest  to  be  very  careful  of  their  sayings  and  doings, 
for  there  is  no  telling  whether  or  not  the  Angel  of  the 
Lord  is  watching  them,  in  order  to  communicate  to  the 
Prophet  their  proceedings. 


ORDER    LODGE. 

This  is  a  secret  lodge  or  society,  established  by  Joe 
Smith,  in  consequence  of  a  special  revelation  from  Heaven, 
which  he  pretended  to  have  received  respecting  it.  It 
was  intended  to  enable  him  more  effectually  to  execute  his 
clandestine  purposes.     None  but  the  very  ilite  of  the  Mor- 


ORDER  LODGE.  275 

mons  are  admitted  into  this  lodge,  as  the  mysteries  of  the 
Holy  Priesthood  are  there,  more  fully  than  elsewhere, 
explained  to  the  members,  who  are  initiated  only  after  they 
have  bound  themselves,  by  a  most  solemn  oath,  to  profound 
and  inviolate  secrecy. 

"  Order  is  Heaven's  first  law;  and,  that  confessed, 
Some  are,  and  must  be,  greater  than  the  rest." 

The  ceremonies  of  initiation  are  in  perfect  keeping  with 
the  general  absurdity  of  the  new  dispensation,  and  with  the 
Holy  Joe's  mission  for  the  "  restoration  of  the  ancient 
order  of  things." 

The  lodge-room  is  carefully  prepared  and  consecrated ; 
and  from  twelve  to  twenty-four  sprigs  of  cassia,  olive 
branches,  cedar  boughs,  or  other  evergreens,  are  tastefully 
arranged  about  it.  These  are  intended  to  represent  the 
eternal  life  and  unmingled  bliss,  which,  in  the  celestial 
kingdom,  will  be  enjoyed  by  all  who  continue  in  full  fel- 
lowship with  "  Order  Lodge." 

The  aspiring  candidate  for  "Holy  Orders"  obtains  ad- 
mission into  this  sanctified  body  in  the  following  manner  : 
He  is  stripped  naked,  and  blindfolded  ;  he  is  then  brought 
into  the  lodge-room,  and  in  that  state  is  conducted  round, 
so  that  all  the  members  of  the  lodge  may  be  satisfied,  by 
personal  inspection,  that  he  is  a  fit  subject  for  their  august 
association,  and  that  he  possesses  the  qualifications  re- 
quired in  Deuteronomy,  twenty-third  chapter  and  first 
verse.  While  the  candidate  is  passing  round  the  room,  in 
this  ridiculous  and  degrading  condition,  the  most  excellent 
Grand  Master  is  repeating,  "  I  will  bring  the  blind  by  a  way 
that  they  knew  not ;  I  will  lead  them  in  paths  that  they 
have  not  known;  I  will  make  darkness  light  before  them, 
and  crooked  things  straight.  These  things  will  I  do  unto 
them,  and  not  forsake  them." 

When  the  candidate  has  passed  satisfactorily  this  queer 
examination,  he  is  brought  to  the  altar,  before  which  he  is 
made  to  kneel.  While  in  this  posture,  the  following  oath 
or  obligation  is  solemnly  administered  to  him,  by  the  Grand 
Master  or  his  representative:  — 

"  In  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of  God,  I  now  promise  and 
swear,  truly,  faithfully,  and  without  reserve,  that  I  will  serve  the 


276  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

Lord  with  a  perfect  lieart  and  a  willing  mind,  dedicating  myselfj 
wholly  and  unreservedly,  in  my  jjcrson  and  efl'ects,  to  the  upbuild-' 
ing  of  liis  kingdom  on  earth,  according  to  liis  revealed  will.  1  fur- 
thermore promise  and  swear  that  I  will  regard  tlie  First  President! 
of  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter  Day  Saints,  as  the  suprema 
head  of  the  Church  on  earth,  and  obey  him  the  same  as  the  Su-j 
preme  God,  in  all  written  revelations,  given  under  the  solemiiitieg! 
of  a  '  Thus  sailh  the  Lord,'  and  that  I  will  always  uphold  the  I'res-] 
idency,  right  or  wrong.  I  furthermore  promise  and  swear  tliat  I  u-iU\ 
never  tuuck  a  dauglUr.r  of  Adam,  unless  she  is  given  me  ok  the' 
Lord.  I  furthermore  promise  and  swear  that  no  Gentile  shall' 
ever  be  admitted  to  the  secrets  of  this  holy  institution,  or  participate! 
in  its  blessings.  I  furthermore  promise  and  swear  that  I  will  assist! 
tlie  Daughter  of  Zion  in  the  utter  destruction  of  apostates,  and  that- 
1  will  assist  in  setting  up  the  Kingdom  of  Daniel  in  these  last  days^J 
by  the  power  of  the  Highest  and  the  sword  of  his  might.  I  further-' 
more  promise  and  swear  that  I  will  never  connnunicate  the  secretS' 
of  thi.s  degree  to  any  person  in  the  known  world,  except  it  be  to  ai 
true  and  lawful  brother,  binding  myself  under  no  less  a  penalty  than] 
that  of  having  melted  lead  poured  into  my  ear.  So  iiclp  me  God,i 
and  keep  me  faithful."  I 

Joe  pretends  that  God  has  revealed  to  him  the  real  Mas-i^ 
ter's  word  which  is  here  given  to  the  candidate.  ; 

This  obligation  is  varied  in  some  cases,  to  snit  the  con-| 
venieuce  or  caprice  of  the  Prophet;  but  the  foregoing  is' 
the  standard  and  usual  form.  It  will  be  seen  that  it  is; 
both  blasphemous  and  treasonable,  in  the  highest  degree.! 
The  candidate  swears  to  obey  the  First  President  of  the^ 
Mormon  Hierarchy,  as  the  '■'Supreme  God,  in  all  loritteri 
revelations;"  that  is,  if  Joe  Smith  should  have  a  "  revela-! 
tion,"  commanding  him  to  massacre  the  "Gentile"  citizens: 
of  Illinois,  for  example,  or  to  overturn  the  Constitution  of; 
the  United  States,  the  members  of  this  precious  "Order; 
Lodge"  are  bound  and  pledged,  under  the  most  heavy ^ 
penalties,  to  assist  him  in  so  doing  !  If  the  contemptiblej 
mummery  of  the  atfair  did  not  reiser  it  a  ridiculous  farce,' 
it  would  merit,  for  its  atrocity,  the  deepest  execration  of  all' 
good  men  and  patriotic  citizens.  Yet,  silly  as  are  itsj 
ceremonies,  this  Order  Lodge  is  not  without  a  very  strong i 
pernicious  influence.  Many  of  the  members  consider  them-' 
selves  solemnly  bound,  in  the  presence  and  by  the  sanction' 
of  the  Most  High  God,  communicated  to  them  by  direct; 
inspiration  through  his  Prophet  and  representative.  Holy' 
Joe  Smith,  to  execute,  to  the  letter,  whatever  that  inspired 


ORDER   LODGE.  277 

genius  may  take  it  into  his  head  to  command,  whether  it 
be  treason,  murder,  arson,  or  robbery. 

When  the  oath  lias  been  administered,  the  candidate  is 
clothed  with  the  robe  of  the  order,  and  the  precious  oint- 
ment, or  consecrated  oil,  poured  upon  his  head,  till  it  runs 
down  upon  his  beard  and  the  skirts  of  his  garment. 
Then  the  nature,  authority,  and  privileges,  of  the  Holy 
Priesthood  are  explained  to  the  candidate,  together  with 
the  ultimate  fate  of  all  Gentiles,  (as  they  term  those  who 
are  not  Mormons,)  sectarian  priests,  apostates,  and  dis- 
senters. 

One  of  the  most  curious  and  ludicrous  ceremonies, 
connected  with  the  initiation  into  Order  Lodge,  is  this : 
After  the  precious  ointment  has  been  poured  upon  the  can- 
didate, a  hole  is  cut  in  the  bosom  of  his  shirt.  (See  plate.) 
This  shirt  must  never,  on  any  account,  be  worn  again, 
but  must  be  sacredly  preserved,  to  keep  the  Destroying 
Angel  from  them  and  their  families.  These  shirts  are 
committed  to  the  care  of  the  wives  of  the  members,  and 
none  but  them  must  touch  them,  or  know  of  their  exist- 
ence. They  believe  that  these  shirts  will  preserve  them 
from  death,  and  secure  to  them  an  earthly  immortality  : 
but  Bishop  Vinson  Knight,  one  of  the  members,  has  recently 
died,  so  that  it  is  evident  the  hole  in  his  shirt  could  not 
save  him.  Joe  will  probably,  however,  say  that  a  spiritual 
immortality  only  was  promised; 

The  members  of  this  lodge,  in  obedience  to  the  above 
obligation,  have  no  scruple  whatever  in  perjuring  them- 
selves, when  required  to  do  so  by  the  Prophet,  or  when  it 
will  conduce  to  the  interest  or  advancement  of  the  Holy 
Mormon  Church ;  consequently  they  are  the  readiest  and 
most  dangerous  tools  of  the  Impostor. 

The  Mormon  system  of  theology  recognizes  three  Gods; 
the  first  of  which  is  God  the  Father  ;  the  second  is  God 
the  Son,  or  Jesus  Christ ;  the  third  is  God  the  Holy  Ghost. 
In  Order  Lodge  these  are  all  represented  ;  God  the  Father, 
by  Joe  Smith ;  God  the  Son,  or  Jesus  Christ,  by  Hyrum 
Smith;  and  God  the  Holy  Ghost,  by  George  Miller.  By 
these  precious  divinities  the  candidate  is  initiated  into  the 
higher  mysteries  of  the  Mormon  Priesthood,  of  which  all 
that  need  here  be  sajd  is,  that  they  fit  him  admirably  for 
his  holy  work. 

24 


278  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

Order  Lodge  is  of  comparatively  recent  institution,  and 
embraces  a  considerable  number  of  members. 


MILKING   THE   GENTILES. 

Milking  the  Gentiles  is  a  kind  of  vernacular  term  of  the 
Mormons,  and  signifies  the  obtaining  of  money  or  property 
from  those  who  are  not  members  of  the  Mormon  Church, 
(or  are  not  attached  to  the  Mormon  confederation,  or 
government,  as  Jack  Mormons,)  by  humbuggery,  cajoling, 
and  false  pretences,  the  levying  of  contributions,  etc.  etc. 
Thus,  when  Joe  is  in  want  of  funds  for  the  Temple,  Nau- 
voo  House,  or  private  tise,  he  commissions  some  of  his 
satellites  of  the  illuminati,  arms  them  with  the  parapegm 
of  the  Church,  instructs  them  in  the  various  ramifications 
of  the  fiscality,  polity,  and  policy,  of  the  confederation, 
and  sends  them  out,  all  panoplied  with  Mormon  glory,  to 
milk  the  Gentiles  I  Money  is  wanted  to  send  out  mission- 
aries to  convert  the  heathen  in  New  England,  Europe,  or 
the  Holy  Land  of  Palestine  ;  the  Gentiles  must  be  milked, 
and  the  needful  procured  !  Funds  are  required  to  sustain 
the  Imperial  Mormon  PontiiT,  and  his  Cabinet,  in  princely 
magnificence  and  Oriental  splendor ;  to  keep  up  the  ex- 
cellence and  surpassing  beauty  of  the  harem  and  the  upper 
sanctuary;  and  to  liquidate  the  pressing  claims  on  the 
government  of  the  Empire;  —  to  milk  the  Gentiles- is  the 
first  expedient  and  the  last  resort,  the  Alpha  and  the 
Omega  of  Mormon  financiering.  Sometimes  they  get 
into  tall  clover,  and  the  milk  flows  profusely ;  at  others, 
the  fare  is  but  middling,  —  Pharaoh's  lean  kine  eat  up  the 
fatlings  of  the  flock.  Many  of  the  poor  Gentiles,  however, 
are  soaped  over,  and  swallowed  so  quick  that  salt  can't 
save  them.  They  go  to  Nauvoo,  Babylon  and  Mother  of 
Harlots,  but  the  golden  calf  is  not  to  be  found  there  1  Jo- 
seph has  fled,  Orin  has  gone,  and  Willard,  and  Robert,  and 
Hosea,  and  Dimick,  and  Hyrum,  have  hung  their  harps 
upon  the  willows,  and  refiised  to  dance  before  the  Lord 
on  the  holy  mount !     Sic  transit  gloria  muncli !     For  a 


ASSASSINATION   AND    ATTEMPTED    ASSASSINATIONS.     279 

more  perfect,  graphic,  and  interesting  account  of  the  milTc- 
ing  of  the  Gentiles,  I  beg  leave  to  refer  the  reader  to  the 
sermon  on  the  milking  of  the  goats,  from  the  text,  "  yi7id 
thou  shalt  have  goats'  milk  enough  for  thy  food,  for  the 
food  of  thy  household,  and  for  the  maintenance  of  thy 
maidens,''  (Prov.  xxvii.  27,)  by  Bishop  Alexander  Camp- 
bell, of  Virginia.  He  does  it  up  in  that  inimitable  style, 
a  la  Campbell,  that  rivets  the  attention  upon  any  thing 
falling  from  the  lips  or  pen  of  that  great  man.  Now,  if 
the  Gentiles  desire  to  be  milked,  the  Mormon  Elders  are 
the  chaps  that  can  do  it,  until  they  get  goats'  milk  a  plenty. 
"  He  that  hath  ears  to  hear,  let  him  hear." 


ASSASSINATION     AND     ATTEMPTED    ASSAS- 
SINATIONS. 

MURDER  OF  MR.  JOHN   STEPHENSON. 

From  the  Sangamo  Journal  of  July  15,  1842. 

"THE  DAXITES  — FOUL  MURDER! 

"  We  copy  the  following  from  the  Kaskaskia  Republican.  It  has 
long  been  understood  that  committees  were  sent  about  the  country 
from  the  establishment  at  Nauvoo,  requiring  the  members  of  Joe 
Smith's  Church  to  pay  '  tithes  and  offerings  '  for  the  purpose  of 
building  the  Temple  or  Fortification  at  that  place.  The  commands 
of  Joe  jn  this  particular  are,  we  suppose,  to  be  implicitly  obeyed. 
In  the  case  before  us,  the  individual  who  declined  the  order  of  Joe's 
servants,  paid  the  penalty  of  the  refusal.  His  house  was  robbed, 
and  himself  shot  dead  in  his  field  ! 

"  From  the  Kaskaskia  Republican. 
"  '  $200  Reward. 
"^Murder  most  horrible!  —  One  of  the  most  horrid  and  atro- 
cious murders  was  committed  on  the  person  of  my  brother,  John 
Stephenson,  in  Jackson  county,  Illinois,  on  the  2d  day  of  June, 
1842,  perhaps,  in  the  whole  catalogue  or  annals  of  crime.  All  that 
js  known  of  the  circumstances  attending  the  perpetration  of  the  dark 
and  hellish  deed  is,  that  my  brother  was  ploughing  in  the  field,  his 
wife  from  home,  and,  no  person  being  at  the  house,  the  foul  fiend 
entered,  the  house,  broke  open  his  trunk  in  search  of  money,  as  is 
supposed ;  but  as  my  brother  had,  but  four  or  five  days  previously, 


280  HISTORY    OF    THE     SAINTS. 

been  to  the  land-office  and  purchased  land,  there  were  but  three  dol- 
lars in  the  trunk.  The  wretch  then  took  the  gun  of  the  deceased, 
and,  from  every  appearance,  concealed  himself  near  the  fence,  and 
awaited  the  approach  of  the  deceased,  and  as  he  was  turning  round, 
shot  him  down  with  his  own  gun. 

"  '  The  deceased  was  as  harmless  and  quiet  a  man  as  ever  lived  ; 
it  is  not  known  or  believed  that  he  had  an  enemy,  upon  the  earth. 

"  '  Myself  and  deceased  brother  joined  the  Morinoiis  some  two  years 
since.  On  tlie  27th  day  of  May,  1842,  but  six  days  before  my  brother 
was  murdered.  Brown  and  Abbott,  two  Mormons,  called  upon  us  for 
contributions  of  property  and  money  to  aid  in  building  the  Temple  at 
JVauvoo  ;  and,  upon  our  refusal  to  give  up  to  them  the  amount  demand- 
ed, the  said  two  Mormons,  by  way  of  threatening  us,  said,  ?o«  viight 
think  ourselves  tcell  off  if  ice  had  our  property  long.  They,  the  said 
Mormons,  further  told  us,  that  they  had  stock  to  drive,  and  had  but 
one  dollar  and  twenty-five  cents,  and  money  they  must  have,  let  it 
come  from  where  it  would ;  and  they  did  not  care  where  it  came 
from ;  they  also  said  if  we  would  take  our  money  to  Crow's,  in  the 
six  mile  prairie,  in  Perry  county,  on  the  Saturday  following,  they 
would  receive  it,  and  all  should  be  right. 

"  '  It  is  impossible  for  suspicion  to  attach  to  any  person  not  a  Mor- 
mon, in  the  neighborhood,  as  being  concerned  in  the  horrid  deedj 
and  it  is  believed,  from  all  the  circumstances,  that  the  said  two 
Mormons  are  connected  with  the  bloody  and  foul  transaction. 

"  '  The  gun  taken  is  a  rifle,  with  a  plain  walnut  stock,  iron  guard 
and  thimbles ;  no  other  mounting ;  the  shot-bag  is  of  wolf-skin  ;  and 
the  powder-horn  had  the  name  of  Stephenson  cut  on  it.  There 
was  a  large  butcher-knife  in  the  scabbard  attached  to  the  strap  of 
the  shot-bag.  The  gun  carries  about  sixty-five  balls  to  the  pound. 
The  murderers  took  from  tlie  trunk  a  large  red  morocco  pocket- 
book,  with  three  dollars  in  specie ;  one  a  Mexican  dollar,  which  had 
been  tried  at  the  land-office  with  aquafortis,  and  which  made  a 
black  spot  on  the  impress  of  the  head  ;  the  rest  of  the  money  was  in 
bits  and  quarters,  with  a  hole  in  each  piece. 

"  '  A  reward  of  two  hundred  dollars  will  be  given  for  the  appre- 
hension of  the  murderer  or  murderers. 

"  '  All  papers  friendly  to  the  cause  of  right  and  justice  will  please 
give  the  above  one  insertion  in  their  columns. 

" '  Edwakd  Stephenson. 

•'  '  Jackson  Countt,  Illinois,  June  4,  1842.' 

"  We  understand  that  this  murder  has  produced  great  excitement 
in  the  south  part  of  the  State.  A  fellow-citizen  murdered  because 
he  would  not  give  up  his  property  to  a  Mormon  for  the  purpose  of 
building  the  Temple  and  Fort  at  Nauvoo  !  What  think  you  of  this, 
citizens  of  Illinois.' " 

Will  not  the  people  of  the  west  open  their  eyes  to  their 
imminent  peril  ?  Will  they  suffer  a  community  of  murder- 
ers to  congregate  their  forces,  and  immolate  those  nearest 
allied  and  most  endeared  to  them  by  the  ties  of  humanity 
and   consanguinity,   without  a  murmur?      Citizens,   be 


ASSASSINATION  AND  ATTEMPTED  ASSASSINATIONS.     281 

ready  to  put  your  armor  on,  and  spread  your  banners  on 
the  air!  lor  if  the  battle  must  he  fought,  I  will  lead  you 
on  to  glorious  victory  in  this  great  moral  struggle,  where 
the  cause  of  morality  and  true  religion  is  bleeding  at 
every  pore.  Arise  in  the  plenitude  of  your  strength,  and 
assert  your  rights,  and,  in  the  name  of  the  Lord  God  of 
Israel,  lay  the  rebels  low  !      Vox  populi  vox  Dei. 


THE  ATTEMPTED  MURDER  OF  GOVERNOR  BOGGS. 

Joseph  Smith,  the  Mormon  Prophet,  in  a  public  congre- 
gation in  the  city  of  Nauvoo,  in  the  year  1841,  prophesied 
that  Lilburn  W.  Boggs,  Ex-Governor  of  Missouri,  should 
die  by  niolcnt  hands  within  a  year.  Mr.  C  S.  Hamilton, 
of  Carthage,  Illinois,  stated  in  my  presence,  and  in  the 
presence  of  several  other  gentlemen,  at  the  tavern-house 
of  Mr.  R.  L.  Robertson,  in  Warsaw,  Illinois,  on  Sunday, 
the  10th  day  of  July,  1842,  that  he  was  present,  and  heard 
Smith  make  this  prophecy.  I  was  likewise  present,  and 
heard  it.  Smith  was  speaking  of  tlie  Missouri  difficulties 
at  the  time,  and  said  that  the  exterminator  should  be  ex- 
terminated, and  that  the  Destroying  Angel  should  do  it 
by  the  right  hand  of  his  power.  "I  say  it,"  said  he,  "  in 
the  name  of  the  Lord  God  !  " 

In  the  spring  of  the  year  1842,  Smith  offered  a  reward 
of  five  hundred  dollars  to  any  man  that  would  secretly  assas- 
sinate Governor  Bofrors.     I  heard  the  offer  made  at  a  meet- 

OCT 

ing  of  the  Daughter  of  Zion,  (Danites,)  in  the  Nauvoo 
lodge-room,  at  which  meeting  several  of  the  members 
of  the  Destroying  Angel  {Destructives)  were  present. 
As  a  member  of  the  First  Presidency ,  I  had  a  right  to  be 
present  at  all  meetings  of  the  various  departments  of  the 
Church,  and  witness  their  operations ;  and,  in  this  matter, 
as  one  of  his  councillors,  I  advised  the  Prophet  to  desist, 
and  abandon  his  purposes  in  relation  to  Governor  Boggs 
and  the  Missourians.  His  reply  was,  "  The  Destroying 
Angel  icill  do  the  work;  lohen  God  speaks,  his  voice  must 
he  obeyed."  Mr.  Jotham  Clark,  of  Hancock  county,  lUi- 
24* 


282  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

nois,  stated  in  Carthage,  on  the  Cth  of  July,  1842,  in  the 
presence  of  Dr.  Thomas  L.  Barnes,  Jonas  Hobart,  myself, 
and  others,  that  a  Mr.  Taylor,  an  English  emigrant,  told 
him  that  he  heard  Smith  make  the  same  offer,  (five  hun- 
dred dollars  for  any  man  who  would  kill  Governor  Boggs,) 
and  that  he  (Taylor)  had,  in  consequence  thereof,  aposta- 
tized from  the  Mormon  faith,  and  written  home  to  his 
friends  in  Europe,  detailing  the  horrible  facts.  This  was 
in  the  early  part  of  the  spring  of  1842. 

Mr.  O.  P.  Rockwell  left  Nauvoo  from  one  to  two  months 
prior  to  the  attempted  assassination  of  Governor  Boggs, 
and  returned  the  day  before  the  report  reached  there. 
Colonel  Francis  M.  Higbee  told  me,  in  Carthage,  in  the 
presence  of  General  George  W.  Robinson,  that  Professor 
Orson  Pratt,  and  his  wife,  Sarah  M.  Pratt,  told  him,  that 
Mr.  O.  P.  Rockwell,  in  a  conversation  with  them,  at  Mr. 
Pratt's  residence,  in  Nauvoo,  stated  that  he  (Rockwell) 
had  been  in  Governor  Boggs's  neighborhood,  in  Missouri, 
and  had  had  the  honor  of  standing  on  the  corner  of  the 
Temple  lot  in  Independence.  Mrs.  Pratt  told  me  the  same 
before  1  left  Nauvooj  and  that  he  (Rockwell)  stated  that  he 
came  down  the  Missouri  River  to  the  Mississippi,  thence 
down  to  St.  Louis,  Missouri,  thence  up  to  Nauvoo,  Illinois. 

"  The  (Nauvoo)  Wasp,"  of  May  28,  A.  D.  1842,  a  pa- 
per edited  by  William  Smith,  one  of  the  Twelve  Mormon 
Apostles,  and  brother  of  the  Prophet,  declared,  "  Who  did 
the  NOBLE    DEED  remains  to  be  found  out." 

Some  weeks  after  Rockwell  left  Nauvoo,  I  asked  Smith 
where  he  had  gone.  ^' Gone?"  said  he;  ''■gone  to  fulfil 
PROPHECY,"  with  a  significant  nod,  giving  me  to  under- 
stand that  he  had  gone  to  fulfil  his  prediction  in  relation 
to  the  violent  death  of  Governor  Boggs.  Soon  after 
Rockwell's  return,  Smith  said  to  me,  speaking  of  Gov- 
ernor Boggs,  "  The  Destroying  Angel  has  done  the  work, 
as  I  predicted,  but  Rockwell  was  not  the  man  who  shot ; 
THE  Angel  did  it."  Rockwell  is  one  of  the  Daughter 
of  Zion,  (a  Danite,)  but  I  do  not  think  that  he  belongs  to 
the  Destroying  Angel. 

On  Friday,  the  1st  of  July,  1842,  I  went  to  Carthage, 
and  on  the  5th,  I  had  a  call  from  Mr.  O.  P.  Rockwell,  the 
result  of  which  is  detailed  in  the  following  affidavits, 
to  wit :  — 


ASSASSINATION  AND  ATTE.MPTED  ASSASSINATIONS.     283 

"State  of  Illinois,  ) 
Hancock  County,      ) 

"  Personally  appeared  before  me,  Samuel  Marshall,  a  Justice  of 
the  Peace  in  and  for  said  county,  John  C.  Bennett,  wlio,  being  duly 
sworn  according  to  law,  deposelh  and  saith,  That  on  the  5th  of  July, 
1842,  at  the  house  of  Mr.  Hamilton,  in  Carthage,  Mr.  O.  P.  Rock- 
well came  to  him  and  desired  a  private  interview,  to  which  depo- 
nent replied,  that  if  he  (Rockwell)  had  any  thing  to  say,  he  could 
speak  it  out  before  the  gentlemen  present.  Rockwell  said  it  was  a 
private  matter  which  interested  them  only.  Deponent  then  went 
out  with  him.  Rockwell  said,  '  Doctor,  you  do  not  know  your 
friends ;  I  am  not  your  enemy,  and  I  do  not  wish  you  to  make  use 
of  my  name  in  your  publications.'  Deponent  replied,  that  he  recog- 
nized Joe  Smith  and  all  his  friends  as  his  personal  enemies;  to 
which  Rockwell  replied,  '  I  have  been  informed  by  Warner  and 
Davis  that  you  said  Smith  gave  me  fifty  dollars  and  a  wagon  for 
shooting  Boggs,  and  I  can  and  will  whip  any  man  that  will  tell  such 
a  cursed  lie  ;  did  you  say  so  or  not  ?  '  After  looking  at  him  for  a 
moment  oi  two,  deponent  said,  '  I  never  said  so,  sir ;  but  1  did  say, 
and  I  now  say  it  to  your  face,  that  you  left  Nauvoo  about  two 
months  before  the  attempted  assassination  of  Ex- Governor  Boggs, 
of  Missouri,  and  returned  the  day  before  the  report  of  his  assassina- 
tion reached  there ;  and  that  two  persons,  in  Nauvoo,  told  me  that 
you  told  them  that  you  had  been  over  the  upper  part  of  Missouri, 
and  in  Boggs's  neighborhood  ; '  to  which  Rockwell  replied,  '  Well, 
I  was  there  ;  and  if  I  shot  Boggs,  they  have  got  to  prove  it.  I  never 
did  an  act  in  my  life  that  I  was  ashamed  of,  and  I  do  not  fear  to 
go  any  where  that  I  have  ever  be^,  for  I  have  done  nothing  crimi- 
nal.' Deponent  replied,  '  Certainly  they  have  got  to  prove  it  on 
you,  if  you  did  shoot  him ;  1  know  nothing  of  what  you  did,  as  I 
was  not  there.  I  only  know  the  circumstances,  and  from  them  I  draw 
my  own  inferences,  and  the  public  will  theirs;  and  now,  sir,  if  either 
you,  or  Joe  Smith,  think  you  can  intimidate  me  by  your  tlireats, 
you  are  mistaken  in  your  man,  and  I  wish  you  to  understand,  dis- 
tinctly, that  I  am  opposed  to  Joe  and  his  holy  host.  I  shall  tell  the 
truth  fearlessly,  and  regardless  of  consequences.'  Rockwell  replied, 
'  If  you  say  tliat  Joe  Smi'h  gave  me  hfty  dollars  and  a  wagon  to 
shoot  Boggs,  I  can  whip  you,  and  will  do  it  in  any  crowd.'  Depo- 
nent then  said,  '  Why  are  you  harping  on  what  I  have  not  said  .-'  I 
have  told  you  what  I  have  said,  to  your  face,  and  in  the  presence  of 
these  gentlemen,  and  you  have  acknowledged  the  truth  of  all  I  have 
said,  and  I  shall  say  it  again  ;  and  if  you  wish  to  fight,  I  am  ready 
for  you.'  The  conversation  then  ceased  on  that  subject.  Rockwell 
told  deponent  that  he  had  been  accused  wrongfully  of  wishing  to 
assassinate  him,  or  of  being  ordered  by  Smith  to  do  so;  but  depo- 
nent said,  '  I  believe  that  Joe  ordered  you  to  do  it.  1  know  that 
orders  went  from  him  to  the  Danites  for  that  purpose.'  Rockwell 
said  that  Smith  had  never  given  him  any  such  orders,  neither  was  it 
his  intention  ;  and  further  this  deponent  saith  not. 

—  "  John  C.  Bf.nnett. 

"  Sworn  to,  and  subscribed,  this  7th  day  of  July,  1841<J,  before  me, 
at  my  office,  in  Carthage. 

"Samuel  Marshall,  Justice  of  the  Peace." 


284  HISTORY    OF   THE    SAINTS. 

"State  of  Illinois,  ) 
Hancock  County,       )  ^  ' 

"  Personally  appeared  before  me,  Samuel  Marshall,  a  Justice  of 
the  Peace  in  and  for  said  county,  Clayton  Tweed,  who,  being  duly 
sworn  according  to  law,  deposeth  and  saith,  That  on  the  5tli  day 
of  July,  1842,  at  the  house  of  Mr.  Hamilton,  in  Carthage,  JMr.  O.  P. 
Rockwell  came  up  to  General  John  C.  Bennett,  and  said  to  him, 
'  I  wish  to  have  some  private  conversation  with  you  ;  will  you  come 
out  of  doors  with  me  ? '  To  which  Bennett  replied, '  No,  sir  ;  if  you 
have  any  thing  to  say  to  me,  speak  it  out  before  these  gentlemen.' 
Rockwell  then  observed,  '  It  is  a  matter  which  interests  you  and 
ra3'self  alone,  and  I  should  like  much  to  see  you  a  few  minutes  by 
ourselves.'  They  then  went  out,  and  were  some  time  in  conversa- 
tion, when  loud  words  ensued,  and  deponent  came  up,  much  agitated, 
fearing  there  would  be  a  fight,  and  heard  Benn^t  say,  '  I  now  say 
to  j^our  face  what  I  said  behind  your  back,  —  that  you  left  Nauvoo 
about  two  months  before  the  attempted  assassination  of  Ex-Governor 
Boggs,  of  Missouri,  and  returned  the  day  before  the  report  of  his 
assassination  reached  there,  and  that  two  persons  in  Nauvoo  told 
me  that  you  told  them,  that  you  had  been  over  to  the  upper  part  of 
Missouri,  and  in  Boggs's  neighborhood;'  to  which  Rockwell  re- 
plied, '  If  I  shot  Boggs,  they  have  got  to  prove  it.'  Bennett  said, 
'  Certainly,  they  have  got  to  prove  it  on  you  if  you  did  shoot  him. 
I  know  nothing  of  what  j-ou  did,  as  I  was  not  there.  I  only  know 
the  circumstayices,  and  from  them  I  draw  my  own  itifaenccs,  and 
the  public  will  theirs.  And  now,  sir,  if  either  you  or  Joe  Smith 
think  you  can  intimidate  nie  by  your  threats,  you  are  mistaken  in 
your  man;  and  I  wish  you  to  understand,  distinctl}',  tliat  I  am  op- 
postid  to  Joe  and  his  holy  host.  I  shall  tell  the  truth  fearlessly,  and 
regardless  of  consequences.'  Bennett  further  remarked,  '  Why  are 
you  harping  about  what  I  have  7iot  said  .■'  I  have  tcld  }'ou  wliat  I 
hare  said,  to  your  face,  and  you  have  acknowledged  the  truth  of  it, 
and  I  will  say  it  again ;  and  if  you  wish  to  fight,  I  an)  now  ready 
for  you;  you  will  never  have  a  better  time.'  The  conversation 
then  ceased,  and  the  parties  separated  ;  and  further  this  deponent 
saith  not.  Clayton  Tweed. 

"  Sworn  to,  and  subscribed,  before  me,  this  7th  day  of  July,  1842, 
at  my  office,  in  Carthage. 

"Samuel  Marshall,  Justice  of  the  Peace."- 


"  State  of  Illinois,  ) 
Hancock  County,      j 

"  Personally  appeared  before  me,  Samuel  Marshall,  a  Justice  of 
the  Peace  in  and  for  said  county,  Jonas  Hobart,  who,  being  duly 
sworn  according  to  law,  deposeth  and  saith,  That  on  the  5th  day  of 
July,  1842,  at  the  tavern-house  of  Mr.  Hamilton,  in  Carthage,  he 
came  up  to  where  General  John  C.  Bennett  and  Mr.  O.  P.  Rock- 
well w'cre  in  anirry  conversation,  when  he  heard  Rockwell  say,  that 
if  any  man  said  that  Joe  Smith  hired  him  to  shoot  Boggs,  he  stated 
what  was  false.    There  was  then  some  warm  talk  about  fighting, 


ASSASSINATION  AND  ATTEMPTED  ASSASSINATIONS.     285 

and  Bennett  said,  '  I  tell  yon,  sir,  to  your  face,  what  I  have  sa'd  be- 
hind your  back,  and  if  you  are  for  fight,  now  is  as  good  a  time  as 
you  will  have.'  Rockwell  said  he  had  been  up  into  Booo-s's 
neighborhood,  in  Missouri ;  and  said  he,  '  If  I  shot  Boggs,  they 
have  got  to  prove  it.'  Bennett  said,  '  Certainly  they  have  ;  I  do 
not  know  what  you  did;  I  only  know  the  circumstances.  I  have 
told  them,  and  I  have  now  told  them  to  your  face,  and  you  have 
acknowledged  them  ;  and  I  shall  tell  them  again,  fearless  of  conse- 
quences; '  and  further  deponent  saith  not. 

"  Jonas  HoBART. 

"  Sworn  to,  and  subscribed,  this  9th  day  of  July,  1842,  before  me, 
at  my  office,  in  Carthage. 

"  Sasiuel  Marshall,  Justice  of  the  Peace." 


"  State  of  Illinois, 
Hancock  County, 

"  Personally  appeared  before  me,  Samuel  Marshall,  Justice  of  the 
Peace  in  and  for  said  county,  John  H.  Lawton,  who,  being  duly 
sworn  according  to  law,  deposeth  and  saith.  That  on  the  5th  day  of 
July,  1842,  he  came  up  to  where  General  John  C.  Bennett  and  O. 
P.  Rockwell  were  in  conversation,  at  the  house  of  Mr.  Hamilton,  in 
Carthage,  and  heard  Rockwell  say  that  he  had  been  up  in  Boggs's 
neighborhood,  in  Missouri,  and  that  if  he  had  shot  Boggs,  they  had 
to  prove  it;  and  then  began  to  talk  of  whipping  Bennett,  whereupon 
Bennett  replied,  '  I  have  said  nothing  behind  your  back  but  what  I 
now  say  to  your  face,  and  if  you  wish  to  fight  now,  I  am  ready 
for  you.'  The  conversation  then  ceased,  and  the  parties  separated  ; 
and  further  this  deponent  saith  not.  John  H.  Lawton. 

"  Sworn  to,  and  subscribed,  this  Cth  day  of  July,  1842,  before  me, 
at  my  office,  in  Carthage.  Samuel  Marshall, 

Justice  of  the  Peace." 


I  would  further  say,  that  before  Rockwell  left  Nauvoo, 
he  was  abjectly  poor;  but  since  his  return,  he  left  his 
family  in  the  lower  part  of  the  city,  and  took  up  his  resi- 
dence at  the  tavern  of  Captain  Amos  Davis ;  has  an  ele- 
gant carriage  and  horses  at  his  disposal,  and  his  pockets 
filled  with  gold.  Captain  Davis  can  testify  about  this 
matter.  These  horses  and  carriage  belontred  to  Smith, 
and  the  gold  was  furnished  by  him.  Smith  told  me  that 
he  furnished  the  carriage,  horses,  and  gold  sovereigns,  to 
Rockwell.  But  said  he,  "  It  is  to  enable  him  to  con- 
vey passengers  from  the  steamboats  to  the  Temple  and 
back  again  ! "     Bah  !     My  ogjnion  is,  that  Smith  jjrocurcd 


286  HISTORY    OP    THE    SAINTS. 

the  attempted  assnssination,  (and  of  this  I  entertain  no 
doubt  whatever ;  I  feel  as  certain  of  it  as  I  do  tliat  I  am  a 
living  man  ;)  that  Rockwell,  as  a  member  of  the  Daugh- 
ter of  Zion,  acted  as  the  conductor  or  guide  ;  and  that 
one  of  the  twelve  composing  the  Destroying  Angel,  assist- 
ed BY  Rockwell,  did  the  deed.  This  is  the  amount  of 
what  I  know  in  relation  to  this  unfortunate  transaction. 
Joseph  Smith  is  the  man  who  should  atone  for  the 
ACT  —  ^' Nam  scelus  intra  se  taciturn  qui  cogitat  nllum, 
facti  crimen  hahet."  "  For  he  who  silently  intends  a 
crime,  has  all  the  guilt  of  the  deed."  There  are  cases  in 
which,  to  resolve  upon,  and  to  commit  a  guilty  act,  are 
equal  in  point  of  criminality,  and  this  is  one.  From 
what  he  said  to  me,  it  is  evident  that  Smith  knows  both 
of  the  actual  perjjetrators  as  well  as  the  guide,  and  that 
HE  directed  the  ACT,  as  in  the  case  of  Mr.  Grandison 
Newell,  of  Ohio,  pretending  it  was  the  will  of  God.  As 
accessory  before  the  fact,  Smith  had  great  fears  of  an  ar- 
rest; but  said  he,  "If  Governor  Reynolds  demands,  and 
Governor  Carlin  delivers  me  up,  thei/  shall  be  smitten  by 
the  Destroying  Angel  of  the  Lord,  like  Herod,  and  die  of 
the  scab."  He  said  God  intended  to  save  him  to  chastise 
this  generation  ;  and  that,  like  Mahomet,  he  would  sway 
an  imperial  sceptre  over  the  nations  of  the  earth,  and  that 
Missouri  should  bow  first  to  the  rod  of  his  power ;  for 
said  he,  "  Thus  saith  the  Lord  God." 

I  have  just  received  a  letter  from  Joseph  O.  Boggs, 
M.  D.,  a  very  worthy  and  talented  brother  of  Governor 
Lilburn  W.  Boggs,  from  which  I  make  the  following  ex- 
tract :  — 

"  Independence,  Mo.,  September  12,  1842 

"  Generai.  John  C.  Bennett  : 
"Dear  Sir, — 

"We  have  now  no  doubt  of  the  guilt  of  Smith  and  Rockwell. 
Rockwell  is  known  here,  and  was  seen  in  Platte  county  for  several 
days  preceding  tlie  shooting  of  my  brother.  When  he  was  arrested, 
he  told  the  messenger  that  he  could  prove  that  he  was  seven  miles 
north  of  Independence  on  the  night  that  Governor  Boggs  was  shot. 
This  only  confirms  the  suspicions  against  him. 

"  Yours,  respectfully, 

.        "Joseph  O.  Boggs.  ' 


ASSASSINATION  AND  ATTESIPTED  ASSASSINATIONS.    287 

Doctor  Boggs  judges  correctly;  there  can  be  no  rea- 
sonable doubt  of  their  guilt.  I  am  fully  persuaded  that 
there  were  three  men  concerned  in  the  murderous  plot  — 
Joseph  Smith,  the  instigator,  and  Orin  Porter  Rockwell, 
of  the  Danites,  and  some  one  of  the  Destructives  unknown 
to  me.  That  trio  planned  and  executed  that  fell  deed,  as 
far  as  it  was  consummated  ;  and  nothing  but  fortuitous 
circumstances,  or  the  interposition  of  Divine  Providence, 
prevented  the  death  of  that  worthy  public  functionary.  In 
obedience  to  the  requisition  made  upon  me,  I  shall  imme- 
diately repair  to  Independence,  in  the  western  confines  of 
Missouri,  in  order  to  bring  the  claims  of  the  Mormon 
Mahomet  to  public  distinction  to  a  speedy  issue. 


THE  DURESS  AND  ATTEMPTED  MURDER  OF 
THE  AUTHOR. 

THE  DURESS. 

"On  the  17th  day  of  May,  A.  D.  1842,  Joe  Smith  re- 
quested to  see  me  alone  in  the  preparation  room  of 
Nauvoo  Lodge,  U.  D.,  on  some  important  business.  We 
entered,  and  he  locked  the  door,  ptit  the  key  in  his  pocket, 
DREW  A  PISTOL  OX  ME,  and  said,  'The  peace  of  my 
family  requires  that  you  should  sign  an  affidavit,  and 
make  a  statement  before  the  next  City  Council,  on  the 
19th,  exonerating  me  from  all  participation  whatever, 
either  directly  or  indirectly,  in  word  or  deed,  in  the  spir- 
itual WIFE  DOCTRINE,  Or  privutc  intercourse  jcith  females 
in  general;  and  if  you  do  not  do  it  icith  apparent  cheer- 
fulness, I  will  make  cat-fish  bait  of  you,  or  deliver  you 
over  to  the  Danites  for  execution  to-night;  for  my  dig- 
nity and  purity  must  and  shall  be  maintained  before   the 

public,  EVEN    AT    THE    EXPENSE    OF  LIFE.        Will  yOU   do  it, 

or  die  ? '  I  replied  that  he  had  better  procure  some  other 
person  or  persons  to  do  so,  as  there  were  a  plenty  who 
could  do  it  in  truth.  '  No,'  said  he,  '  that  will  not  do ; 
for  it  is  known  that  you  are  well  acquainted  with  all  my 
private  acts,  better  than  any  other  man ;  and  it  is  in  your 
power  to  save  me  or  damn  me ;  and  as  you  have  now  with- 


288  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

drawn  from  the  Church  in  an  honorable  manner,  OVER 
MY  OWN  SIGNATURE,— a  privilege  never  granted  to 
any  other  person, — you  must  mid  sluill  place  it  out  of  your 
power  to  injure  me  or  the  Church.  Do  it,  or  the  Mississip- 
pi is  your  portion.  Will  you  do  it  ?  '  I  remarked  that  it 
was  a  hard  case,  and  that  I  would  leave  peaceably,  and 
without  any  public  exposition,  if  he  would  excuse  me.  He 
re[)lied,  'I  tell  you  as  I  was  once  told,  "  Your  die  is  cast ! 
Youji  fate  is  fixed!!  YOUR  DOOM  IS  SEALED'!!" 
if  you  refuse.  Will  you  do  it,  or  die? '  I  remarked  that  I 
would,  under  the  circumstances ,  but  that  it -was  liard  to 
take  the  advantage  of  an  unarmed  man.  '  If  you  tell  that 
publicly,'  said  he,  '  death  is  your  portion  ;  rcmanber  the 
Danitcs  !  '  He  then  unlocked  the  door  ;  we  went  into 
the  room  below,  and  I  gave  the  affidavit  as  subscribed 
before  General  Daniel  H.  Wells,  an  Alderman  of  the  city, 
A  Jack  Mormon,  '  who  sold  his  birthright  to  Joe 
FOR  A  MESS  OF  POTTAGE,'  (who  was  then,  doing  business 
for  the  Saints  in  the  lower  room,)  and  made  the  statement 
required  before  the  City  Council  on  the  19th.  I  was  not 
aware,  until  the  Sunday  after  my  return  from  Springfield, 
that  any  other  person  was  apprized  of  the  fact  of  the  threat 
o/" murder  !  !  But  on  that  day,  Colonel  Francis  M.  Hig- 
bee  told  me,  in  the  presence  of  General  George  W.  Rob- 
inson, that  HE  WAS  in  possession  of  a  secret  that 
would  open  the  eyes  of  the  people,  and  that,  if  it  came 
to  the  irorst,  he  would  file  his  affidavit ;  but  he  would  not 
then  tell  me  what  that  secret  was.  General  Robinson, 
however,  informed  me  afterwards  that  it  icas  a  knowledge 
of  Joe's  threats  of  murder  and  the  duress.  Accordingly, 
on  the  30th  of  June,  1842,  I  called  upon  Colonel  Higbee 
for  his  affidavit,  which  was  taken  before  General  Hiram 
Kimball,  an  Alderman  of  the  city,  and  is  in  the  words  and 
figures  followinor,  to  wit :  — 

"  '  State  of  Illinois,  j 
Hancock  County,     \  ^^' 

" '  Personally  appeared  before  me,  Hiram  Kimball,  an  Alder- 
man of  the  city  of  Nauvoo,  Francis  M.  Higbee,  who,  being  duly 
sworn  according  to  law,  deposeth  and  saith,  That  Joseph  Smith 
told  him  that  John  C.  Bennett  could  be  easily  put  aside,  or 
DROWSED,  and  no  person  would  he  the  reiser  for  it,  and  that  it 
ouoiiT  TO  BE  ATTENDED  TO  ;    and  lie  further  remarked  that  the 

SOONER     this     WAS     DONE      THE     BJ'.TTER    KOK    THE      ChURGH,    fear- 

ingf  as  he  said,  that  Bennett  would  make  some  disclosures  preju' 


ASSASSINATION  AND  ATTEMPTED  ASSASSINATIONS.    289 

dicial  to  said  Sniilh.  This  was  about  the  tune  of  Bennett  s  with- 
drainal  from  the  Church,  or  a  short  time  before  ;  and  i'urther  this 
deponent  saith  not.  Francis  M.  Higbei;. 

" '  Sworn  to,  and  subscribed,  this  30th  day  of  June,  A.  D.  1842. 

"'Hiram  Kimball,  Mlderman." 

"I  now  declare  the  foregoing  statement  to  be  true  to  the 
letter  ;  and  that  my  affidavit,  taken  before  Daniel  H.  Weils, 
Esq.,  on  the  17th  of  May,  and  my  statement  before  the  City 
Council  of  Nauvoo,  on  the  19th,  as  published  in  '  The 
Wasp  '  of  the  25th  of  June,  1843,  and  in  the  '  Times  and 
Seasons,'  are  false,  and  were  taken  under  DURESS 
as  above  stated,  and  are,  therefore,  destitute  of  moral  or 
legal  obligation.  John  C.  Bennett." 

"  Suffolk,        ) 
Septnnber  13,  1842.  (  ''^" 

"Then  personally  appeared  the  above-named  John  C.  Bennett, 
and  made  oath  that  the  foregoing  affidavit,  by  him  subscribed,  is  true. 

"  Before  me,  Bradford  Sumner,  Justice  of  the  Peace." 

Thomas  C.  Sharp,  Esq.,  editor  of  the  "  Warsaw  Signal," 
(a  paper  published  in  Hancock,  the  county  of  Smith's 
residence,)  in  his  paper  of  August  G,  1842,  in  speaking 
on  this  subject,  remarks  — 

"  The  testimony  of  General  Bennett,  then,  has  force  and  effect, 
when  taken  in  connection  with  that  of  Dr.  Avard,  W.  W.  Phelps, 
and  others,  as  given  before  the  Court  of  Inquiry  in  Missouri,  and 
the  direct  corroborations  of  Colonel  Higbee  and  Miss  Martha  H. 
Brotherton.  All  go  to  show  the  point  arrived  at,  viz.,  that  Joe  Smith 
is  a  most  consummate  villain  and  knave. 

"  The  second  reason  why  we  believe  that  Bennett  does  not  speak 
without  reason,  is  the  fear  of  exposure  which  Joe  himself  seemed 
to  manifest,  on  the  withdrawal  of  Bennett  from  the  Church.  It 
appears  that  he  procured  an  affidavit  from  Bennett,  stating  that  he 
(Smith)  had  never  taught  any  thing  wrong,  either  by  word  or  act. 
Now,  we  ask,  why  did  he  want  this  affidavit  ?  If  he  was  conscious 
of  having  never  taught  nor  acted  contrary  to  the  principles  of  honor, 
honesty,  and  righteousness,  where  was  the  necessity  of  procuring 
from  Bennett  an  assurance  of  his  purity  .'  The  truth  is,  no  explana- 
tion can  be  given,  other  than  this,  —  that  Joe  was  fully  aware  that 
Bennett  was  in  possession  of  facts,  which,  if  made  public,  would 
bring  infamy  on  himself  and  the  Church.  Hence  his  anxiety  to 
deprive  Bennett  of  the  power  of  doing  injury,  by  procuring  his 
affidavit,  and  publishing  it,  together  with  a  statement  of  Bennett's 
character,  before  the  latter  had  made  any  charge  against  him  to  the 
world.  His  object,  in  this,  evidently  was  to  forestall  public  opinion, 
by  destroying  the  character  of  a  man  whose  knowledge  of  his  base- 
ness, he  knew,  would  render  him  dangerous.  Now,  we  ask,  if  Joe 
25 


290  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS.  \ 

i 

•was  conscious  of  rectitude,  why  this  anxiety  to  discredit  Bennett,  I 
before  lie  had  uttered  a  word  to  the  public  against  him  ?  Innocent  , 
men  do  not  generally  attempt  to  justify  themselves  before  they  are  ', 
accused ;  but  Smith  was  industrious  to  stop  the  mouth  of  a  witness  | 
who,  he  alleged,  knew  nothing  against  him  '  "  ] 


THE  ATTEMPTED   MURDER. 

In  my  communication  to  the  Sangamo  Journal  of  the 
27th  June,  1S42,  I  stated  that  I  had  been  threatened  with  ; 
death  by  the  Holy  Joe  and  his  Danite  band  of  murderers,  | 
in  case  I  dare  make  any  disclosnrcs  prejudicial  to  that  pol-  ' 
luted  mass  of  corruption,  iniquity,  and  fraud,  —  that  King  | 
of  Impostors,  the  holy  and  immaculate  Joe  Smith;  —  and  in  I 
my  communication  of  July  2d,  I  stated  that,  when  on  my  , 
journey  to  Springfield,  on  my  arrival  in  Carthage,  I  found,  i 
as  all  the  citizens  well  know,  that  I  was  followed  by  Mr. 
O.  P.  Rockwell,  a  Danite,  who,  on  his  arrival  late  in  the  j 
night,  made  strict  inquiries  as  to  where  I  was.     His  osten-  ' 
sible  business  was  to  put  a  letter  in  the  post-office  !    Bah  ! !  ] 
I  was  prepared  for  the  gentleman,  and  he  approached  me  i 
not;    but  another   swift  rider.   Captain  John   D.  Parker,  | 
another  Danite,   followed   me  to  Springfield,   to   carry   a 
letter  to  Dr.  Helm  !    Ah  !  Ha  ! !    BAH  ! ! !     I  told  Cap- 
tain Parker   that  I  was  aware  of  his  object,  but  I  feared  i 
him   not.      At  Virginia,    in   Cass   county,   on   my  return,  j 
Parker  met  me  again,  and  I  called  the   attention  of  the ! 
stage-driver  to  him,  who,  thereupon,  put  two  additional  balls 
into  his  pistol,  and  observed  to  me  that  he  was  then  ready  i 
for  him  or  any  other   person   having  the   same  object  in ' 
view.     On  the  23d  of  June,  1842,   the  Holy  Prophet,  in  | 
an  article  over  his  own  name,  published  in  "  The  (Nauvoo) 
Wasp"  of  June  25th,  threatened  me  with  the  vengeance  : 
OP  THE   Lord,   in   the   following  language :    "  Unless   he 
[Bennett]    is   determined  to  bring  sudden   destruction^ 
upon   himself  from   the   hand   of   the   Almighty,  [the 
Destroying  Angel,]  he  will  be  silent." 

In  order  to  fulfil  this  prediction,  on  the  evening  of  the  ; 
29th  of  June,  the  Destroying  Angel  approached  my  | 
boarding-house,  (General  Robinson's,)  in  Nauvoo,  with ' 
their  carriage  wheels  wrapped  with  blankets,  and  their  ; 


ASSASSINATION  AND  ATTEMPTED  ASSASSINATIONS.   291 

horses'  feet  muffled  with  cloths,  to  prevent  noise,  about 
ten  o'clock,  for  the  purpose  of  conveying  me  off  for 
"  sudden  destruction,^'  or  assassination,  so  as  to  make  me 
"  silent,"  and  thus  prevent  disclosures.  Dead  men  tell  no 
tales  1  But,  as  I  had  an  intimation  of  the  matter  in  the 
afternoon,  I  borrowed  two  pistols  of  General  Robinson, 
and  one  of  Mr.  Hunter,  a  merchant,  and  loaded  them  with 
slucrs.  Besides  these,  I  had  two  crood  Bowie-knives,  and 
some  of  my  friends  were,  likewise,  well  armed,  —  well 
prepared  to  give  the  Angel  a  warm  reception.  So,  after 
prowling  around  the  house  (the  lights  in  which  were  ex- 
tinguished) for  some  time,  the  "hand  of  the  Almighty" 
withdrew  !  On  the  6th  of  July,  Mr.  Jotham  Clark  told  me 
in  Carthage,  in  the  presence  of  Dr.  Thomas  L.  Barnes  and 
Mr.  Jonas  Hobart,  that  he,  having  business  near  there, 
came  into  town  to  tell  me  that  the  Mormons  had  threat- 
ened my  life,  and  warned  me  to  be  on  my  guard.  This  is 
the  treatment  dissenters  receive  when  they  come  out  of  the 
inodern  Babylon,  the  mother  of  harlots,  by  the  Saints  op 
THE  Last  Days.  "  Dii,  talctn  avertite  casum  !  "  "  May 
the  gods  avert  so  great  a  misfortune !  "  General  Wilson 
Law,  and  another  Danite,  went  on  to  Jefferson  City  in 
order  to  blast  my  reputation,  and  prevent,  if  possible,  the 
issuing  of  a  state  writ  by  forestalling  public  opinion  ;  but 
they  were  treated  with  that  contempt  which  they  so  richly 
merited  at  the  hands  of  high-minded  Missourians.  Dr. 
Foster,  and  five  other  Danites,  followed  me  to  New  York 
City,  evidently  for  the  purpose  of  assassination,  as  the 
following  affidavit  will  abundantly  show  :  — 

"  Boston,  September  12,  1842. 
"  To  WHOM  IT  MAY  CONCERN  :  — 

"  On  Wednesday  evening,  August  31st,  I  attended  the  lectures  of 
General  John  C.  Bennett,  and  Origen  Baclieler,  Esq.,  against  Mor- 
raonism,  (in  the  church,  corner  of  Delancy  and  Christie  Streets, 
New  York,)  at  the  close  of  which  the  General  was  maliciously 
attacked  by  a  ruffian  calling  himself  Dr.  Robert  D.  Foster,  a  Danite 
from  Nauvoo,  in  company  with  some  others  of  that  band.  After 
learning  that  Foster  and  his  companions  were  from  Nauvoo,  I 
watched  their  movements ;  and  after  the  lights  were  extinguished, 
and  they  had  retired  by  themselves,  I  heard  Foster  say  that  he  had 
found  Bennett  by  means  of  the  New  York  Herald.  One  of  the  com- 
pany then  asked' Foster  when  he  intended  to  return  to  Nauvoo;  to 
which  he  replied,  as  soon    as   he    had    settled   Bennett!    Foster 


292        HisTonY  OF  the  saints.  I 

I 

had  a  bold  and  unblushing  female  witli  him,  whom  I  judged,  from  j 

appearances,  to  be  one  of  his  spiritual  icives.  I 

"J.  W.  Hallenb£ck.  1 

"  Sworn  to,  September  12tli,  1842,  before  me, 

'-^  B.  SvMH^R,  Justice  of  the  Peace.  : 

Thus  it  is  plain  to  be  seen  that  as  unprincipled  a  set  of  ' 
ruffians   as  ever   disgraced  the  earth,  callincr  themselves 
Saints,  are  in  hot  pursuit  of  me  continually,  for  the  pur- 
pose OF  SECRET  MURDER  !  !    In  my  public  lectures  in  New 

York,  I  was  assisted  by  Origen  Bacheler,  Esq.,  one  of  the  i 

great   champions  of  the  Christian  faith,  by  whom  I  was  '] 

probably  saved  from  the  assassin's  steel.     They  seek  my  ' 

life   in  order  to   save  their  Prophet  —  that  Grand  Tarta-  ' 

rean  Hydra,  whose  face  and  hands  are  yet  dripping  with  ; 

the  blood  of  murder — from  reaping  the  reward  of  his  ini-  \ 

quity,  the  just  penalty  of  violated  laws ;    but   they  shall  | 

yet  "  tremble  at  the  hand-writing  on  the  wall,"   and  shout  ; 

Eureka  from  the  port-holes  of  their  holy  Temple,  on  their  j 

consecrated  mount,  within  the  confines  of  their  delectable  i 

city.     For  vengeance  shall  come  like  a  rushing  torrent  i 

and  a  furious,  beating  tempest,  and  none  shall  be  able  to  i 

deliver  from  under  the  arm  of  legal  power  ;   for  they  shall  i 

be  driven  like  chaff  before  the  wind,  and  consumed  like  j 

stubble  before  the  devouring  flame.     Should  I  be  sacri-  ' 
ficed  or  slain  in  the  conflict,  my  blood  would  be  avenged 

by  God  and  my  country.     I  never  feared  to  die,  but  I  did  ' 

not  intend  to  sell  my  life  cheaply  until  the  world  had  the  ; 
truth  of  the  Mormon  organization  before  them  in  bold 
relief  The  issue  is  now  made  up  ;  "  their  die  is  cast, 
their  fate  is  fixed,  their  doom  is  sealed  : "  their  temple  will 
be  profaned,  their  altars  desecrated,  their  city  devastated, 
their  possessions  confiscated,  and  their  idols  immolated  ; 
and  reason,  sober  reason,  will  once  more  resume  its  em- 
pire in  the   minds  of  the  people,   and   folly,   fraud,   and 

imposture,  hide  their  hydra  head.     All  honest  individuals,  j 

who  have  the  requisite  moral  courage,  will  now  cease  to  I 

worship  the  Mormon  Baal,  in  the  modern  Babylon,  and  ! 

will  bow  submissively  before  the  Lord  God  of  the  Uni-  ' 
verse,  renounce  heathenism,  and  espouse  Christianity. 


CONTEMPLATED    MORMON    EMPIRE.  293 


CONTEMPLATED   MORMON   EMPIRE. 

In  illustration  of  the  plans  and  proceedings  of  Joe  Smith 
and  the  Mormons,  it  may  not  be  amiss  to  give  some  descrip- 
tive remarks  upon  the  states  which  he  designed  as  the  seat 
of  his  empire  and  dominion,  and  where  he  had  begun  to 
establish  his  deluded  followers,  the  destined  instruments  of 
his  treason  and  ambition. 

According  to  the  Mormon  prophets,  the  whole  region 
of  country  between  the  Rocky  Mountains  and  the  Alle- 
ghanies  was,  at  a  period  about  thirteen  hundred  years  ago, 
densely  peopled  by  nations  descended  from  a  Jewish  fam- 
ily, who  emigrated  from  Jerusalem  in  the  time  of  the 
prophet  Jeremiah,  some  six  or  seven  hundred  years  before 
Christ.  Immense  cities  were  founded,  and  sumptuous 
edifices  reared,  and  the  whole  land  overspread  with  the 
results  of  a  high  and  extensive  civilization.  The  Book  of 
Mormon  speaks  of  cities  with  stupendous  stone  walls,  and 
of  battles  in  which  hundreds  of  thousands  of  men  were 
slain  !  The  land  afterwards  became  a  waste,  howling  wilder- 
ness, traversed  by  a  few  straggling  bands  or  tribes  of  savages, 
descended  from  a  branch  of  the  aforesaid  Jewish  family, 
who,  in  consequence  of  their  wickedness,  had  their  com- 
plexion changed  from  white  to  black,  or  rather  dark  red ; 
but  the  emigrants  from  Europe,  and  their  descendants, 
having  filled  the  land,  and  God  having  been  pleased  to 
grant  a  revelation  by  which  is  made  known  the  true  his- 
tory of  the  past  in  America,  and  the  events  which  are 
about  to  take  place,  he  had  also  commanded  the  Saints  of 
the  Latter  Day  to  assemble  themselves  together  there,  and 
occupy  the  land  which  was  once  held  by  the  members  of 
the  true  church.  The  States  of  Missouri,  and  Illinois,  and 
the  Territory  of  Iowa,  are  the  regions  to  which  the  Prophet 
has  hitherto  chiefly  directed  his  schemes  of  aggrandize- 
ment, and  which  were  to  form  the  nucleus  of  the  great 
MORMON  EMPIRE.  The  remaining  states  were  to 
be  licked  up  like  salt,  and  fall  into  the  immense  labyrinth 
of  glorious  prophetic  dominion,  like  the  defenceless  lamb 
before  the  mighty  king  of  the  forest ! 
25* 


294  HISTORY    OF   THE    SAINTS. 

Missouri.  Boundaries  and  Extent.  I  shall  here 
quote  from  Bradford's  Atlas,  pp.   15'2 — 155. 

"  Missouri,  in  point  of  dimensions,  is  tlie  second  State  in  the 
Union,  bein^  inferior  in  extent  only  to  Virn-inia ;  it  extends  from 
36°  to  40°  35'  N.  Lat.,  and  from  89°  20'  to  95°  W.  Lon.,  liaving  an 
area  of  about  C8,500  square  miles.  Its  boundaries,  as  fixed  by  the 
Constitution,  are  a  line  drawn  from  a  point  in  the  middle  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi, in  3G°  N.  Lat.,  to  the  St.  Fran(;ois,  then  up  that  river  to  36° 
30',  and  along  that  parallel  west  to  its  intersection  by  a  meridian  line 
passing  through  the  mouth  of  the  Kanzas  ;  thence  the  western  boun- 
dary was  originally  that  meridian,  but  by  act  of  Congress,  in  1836, 
the  triangular  tract  between  it  and  the  Missouri,  above  the  mouth 
of  the  Kanzas,  was  annexed  to  the  State;  on  the  north,  the  parallel 
of  latitude  which  passes  through  the  rapids  of  the  River  Desmoines, 
forms  the  boundary  between  that  river  and  the  Missouri ;  thence  the 
Desmoines  and  the  Mississippi  make  the  eastern  boundary.  The 
corner  between  the  Desmoines  and  the  Mississippi,  now  in  Wiscon- 
sin, will  also,  in  all  probability^  be  added  to  Missouri,  as  provision 
has  been  made  by  the  State  for  its  annexation,  whenever  the  consent 
of  Congress  shall  be  obtained. 

"  Face  of  the  Country.  Soil.  The  surface  of  that  portion  of  the 
State  which  lies  north  of  the  Missouri  is  generally  moderately  undu- 
lating, consisting  of  an  agreeable  interchange  of  gentle  swells  and 
broad  valleys,  and  rarely,  though  occasionally,  rugged,  or  rising  into 
hills  of  much  elevation.  With  the  exception  of  narrow  strips  of 
woodland  along  the  watercourses,  almost  the  whole  of  this  region  is 
prairie,  at  least  nine  tenths  being  wholly  destitute  of  trees.  The 
alluvial  patches  or  river-bottoms  are  extensive,  particularly  on  the 
Missouri,  and  generally  of  prodigious  fertility,  and  tlie  soil  of  the 
upland  is  equal,  if  not  superior,  to  that  of  any  other  upland  tract  of 
equal  extent  in  the  United  States.  (Long's  Expedition.)  The 
region  south  of  the  Missouri  and  west  of  the  Osage,  is  of  the  same 
description  ;  [the  Northern  and  Western  Missouri  country  is  most 
felicitous  and  delightful,  with  a  soil  of  inexhaustible  fertility,  and 
a  salubrious  climate,  rendering  it  a  most  desirable  and  pleasant  res- 
idence;] but  south-east  of  the  latter  river,  the  State  is  traversed 
by  numerous  ridges  of  the  Ozark  Mountains,  and  the  surface  is  here 
highly  broken  and  rugged.  This  mountainous  tract  has  a  breadth 
of  from  100  to  150  miles,  but  although  it  often  shoots  up  into  precip- 
itous peaks,  it  is  believed  that  they  rarely  exceed  2000  feet  in  height. 
No  accurate  measurements  of  their  elevation  have,  however,  been 
made,  and  little  is  known  of  the  course  and  mutual  relations  of  the 
chains.  The  growth  here  is  pitch  pine,  shrub  oaks,  cedar,  &c.,  in- 
dicative of  the  poverty  of  the  soil ;  in  the  uplands  of  the  rest  of  the 
State,  hickory,  post-oak,  and  white-oak,  &c.,  are  the  prevailing 
growth,  and  in  the  river-bottoms,  the  cotton-tree,  sycamore  or  but- 
ton-wood, maple,  ash,  walnut,  &c,.,  predominate.  The  south-east- 
ern corner  of  the  State,  below  Cape  Girardeau,  and  cast  of  the 
Black  River,  is  a  part  of  that  great  inundated  region  of  which  some 
general  account  has  already  been  given  under  the  head  of  Arkansas; 


CONTEMPLATED    MORMON    EMPIRE.  295 

a  considerable  proportion  of  this  tract  is,  indeed,  above  the  reach  of 
the  floods,  but  these  patches  arc  isolated  and  inaccessible  except  by 
boats,  during  the  high  stages  of  the  water.  It  is  asserted  on  the 
authority  of  intelligent  residents,  that  the  bottoms  of  the  St.  Francis 
were  not  subject  to  be  overflowed  previous  to  the  earthquakes  of 
1811  and  1812,  when  an  extensive  tract  in  the  valley  of  tJiat  river 
sunk  to  a  considerable  depth.  According  to  Stoddard,  who  knew 
nothing  of  the  shocks  of  1811,  earthquakes  have  been  common  here 
from  tlie  first  settlement  of  the  country ;  he  himself  experienced 
several  shocks  at  Kaskaskia  in  1804,  by  which  the  soldiers  stationed 
there  were  aroused  from  sleep,  and  the  buildings  were  much  shaken 
and  disjointed  ;  and  oscillations  still  occur  with  such  frequency  as  to 
be  regarded  with  indiflerence  by  the  inhabitants,  who  familiarly  call 
them  shakes.  But  the  agitations  of  December,  January,  and  Feb- 
ruary, 1811  and  1812,  which  were  felt  from  New  England  to  New 
Orleans,  are  the  only  ones  known  to  have  left  permanent  traces  on 
the  face  of  the  earth,  although  there  is  every  probability  that  this  part 
of  the  valley  of  the  Mississippi  has  been  much  convulsed  at  tbrmer 
periods.  In  1812,  the  earth  here  opened  in  wide  chasms,  from  which 
columns  of  water  and  sand  burst  forth ;  hills  disappeared,  and  their 
places  were  occupied  by  lakes;  the  beds  of  lakes  were  raised,  and 
their  waters  flowed  off",  leaving  them  dry  ;  the  courses  of  the  streams 
were  changed  by  the  elevation  of  their  beds  and  the  falling  in  of  their 
banks ;  for  one  whole  hour  the  current  of  the  Mississippi  was  turned 
backwards  towards  its  source,  until  its  accumulated  waters  were  able 
to  break  through  the  barrier  that  had  dammed  them  back  ;  boats  were 
dashed  on  the  banks,  or  suddenly  left  high  and  dry  in  the  deserted 
channel,  or  hurried  backwards  and  forwards  with  the  eddyinif  surges, 
while  in  the  midst  of  these  awful  changes,  electric  fires,  accompariied 
by  loud  rumblings,  flashed  through  the  air,  which  was  darkened  by 
clouds  of  vapor.  In  some  places,  submerged  forests  and  cane-brakes 
are  still  visible  at  a  great  depth  on  the  bottom  of  lakes,  which  were  then 
formed.  That  the  cause  of  these  convulsions  was  not  local,  as  some 
have  imagined,  is  evident  enough  from  the  fact,  that  the  Azores,  the 
West  India  Islands,  and  the  northern  coast  of  South  America,  were 
unusually  agitated  at  the  same  time,  and  the  cities  of  Caraccas,  La- 
guayra,  and  others  on  the  /ist,  were  totally  destroj'cd.  (Memoirs  of 
Jim.  Acad.  Vol.  III.  Ex.  Doc.  \st  Sess.  2Atk  Cong.  Vol.  I.  Doc.  11. 
Sen.  Doc.  same  Session,  Doc.  113.  Long's  Expedition  to  the  Rocky 
MouTdains,  Vol.  II.  325.) 

"Rivers.  Missouri  is  abundantly  supplied  with  navigable  chan- 
nels, affording  easy  access  to  all  parts  of  the  Slate.  The  Mississippi 
washes  the  eastern  border,  through  a  distance  of  about  470  miles  by 
the  windings  of  the  stream.  Above  St.  Genevieve,  it  flows  for  the 
most  part  between  high  and  abrupt  cliffs  of  limestone,  rising  to  an 
elevation  of  from  100  to  400  feet  above  the  surface  of  the  river, 
sometimes  separated  from  it  by  bottoms  of  greater  or  less  width,  and 
at  others  springing  up  abruptly  from  the  water's  edge.  A  ?e\v  miles 
below  Cape  Girardeau,  and  about  35  miles  above  the  mouth  of  the 
Ohio,  are  the  rocky  ledges  called  the  Little  and  Grand  Chain,  and 
about  halfway  between  that  point  and  St.  Genevieve,  is  the  Grand 
Tower,  one  of  the  wonders  of  the  Mississippi;  it  is  a  stupendous  pile 


296  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

of  rocks  of  a  conical  form,  about  150  feet  high  and  100  feet  in  circum- 
ference at  its  base,  rising  up  out  of  the  bed  of  the  river.  '  It  seems, 
m  connection  with  the  rocky  shores  on  either  side,  to  liave  opposed, 
at  some  former  period,  a  barrier  to  the  progress  of  the  Mississippi, 
which  must  here  have  had  a  perpendicular  fall  of  more  than  100 
feet.'  (Schoolcraft,  Lead  Jilines.)  Colonel  Long  refers  the  posi- 
tion of  this  now  obliterated  cataract  to  the  Grand  Chain.  The 
principal  tributaries  of  the  Mississippi,  with  the  exception  of  the 
Missouri,  are  the  Desmoines,  Wyaconda,  Fabius,  Salt,  and  Copper 
River,  above  that  great  stream,  and  the  Merrimac,  St.  Francis,  and 
White  River  below,  the  two  last  passing  into  Arkansas.  Desmoines, 
which  is  only  a  boundary  stream,  is  navigable  170  miles,  and  Salt 
River,  whose  northern  sources  are  in  Wisconsin,  and  southern  in 
Boone  county,  and  which  takes  its  name  from  the  salt  licks  or  salines 
on  its  borders,  may  be  navigated  by  small  steamboats  to  Flor- 
ida, 85  miles.  -The  Riviere  au  Cuivre,  or  Copper  River,  is  also  a 
navigable  stream,  but  the  navigation  of  all  these  rivers  is  interrupted 
by  ice  in  winter,  and  by  shoals  and  bars  in  the  dry  season.  The 
Merrimac.  or  Merameg,  has  a  course  of  250  miles,  but  is  navigable 
only  about  50  miles,  except  in  tlie  highest  stages  of  the  water.  The 
Bourbeuse,  or  Muddy  River,  Big  River,  and  Fourche  a  Courtois,  are 
its  tributaries.  The  St.  Francois,  or  Francis,  is  a  much  more  consid- 
erable river,  but  its  navigation  is  interrupted  by  several  rafts  or  jams 
of  drift-wood,  and  at  the  Spread  its  waters  are  dissipated  into  so  many 
channels,  that  it  is  difficult  to  find  one  which  may  be  navigated  ;  but 
these  obstructions'  will  soon  be  removed,  and  the  river  will  then  be 
navigable  by  steamboats  to  Greenville.  The  Black  River,  after 
having  received  the  Current,  Eleven  Points,  and  Spring  Rivers, 
enters  the  White  River  in  Arkansas.  That  great  stream  sweeps 
round  into  the  south-western  part  of  this  State,  from  which  it  receives 
several  large  streams,  and  further  west  are  the  tributaries  of  the 
Neosho. 

"  The  Missouri  flows  through  the  State  for  a  distance  of  about  600 
miles,  but  although  steamboats  have  ascended  it  2500  miles  from  its 
mouth,  its  navigation  is  rendered  difficult  and  dangerous  by  sand- 
bars, falling  banks,  snags,  and  a  shifting  channel,  and  is  only  practi- 
cable about  four  months  in  the  year,  being  interrupted  by  ice  in 
winter  and  by  the  shoals  in  summer.  It  is  below  the  mouth  of  the 
Platte,  not  far  above  the  northern  line  of  Missouri,  that  it  assumes 
the  turbulent  and  turbid  character  which  it  imparts  to  the  Missis- 
sippi. To  the  distance  of  about  400  miles  from  its  mouth  its  banks 
are  clothed  with  trees,  but  beyond  this  the  country  is  almost  entirely 
unwooded,  even  on  its  borders.  The  Nishnabottana,  Nodawa,  Little 
Platte,  Grand  River,  and  Chariton,  considerable  streams  rising  in 
Wisconsin,  are  the  principal  tributaries  from  the  north,  and  the 
Lamine,  Osage,  and  Gasconade,  from  the  south.  The  Osage  is  Uie 
most  important  of  these  rivers;  it  rises  in  the  Indian  Territory,  and 
flows  through  some  of  the  most  fertile  lands  in  JNIissouri  for  a  dis- 
tance, by  its  windings,  of  nearly  600  miles ;  it  is  navigable  for 
steamboats  to  the  moutli  of  the  Sac,  about  200  miles,  and  to  the 
western  frontier  by  large  keel  boats.  The  Sac,  Pomme  de  Terre, 
Niangua,  and  Grand  River,  its  tributaries,  are  navigable  streams. 


CONTEMPLATED    MORMON    EMPIRE.  297 

The  Gasconade  rises  in  the  mountainous  tract  near  tlie  heads  of  the 
tributaries  of  White  River,  and  has  a  course  of  about  250  miles  ;  it  is 
navigable  upwards  of  100  miles. 

"■Minerals.  Perhaps  no  region  in  the  world  surpasses  Missouri 
in  the  variety  and  abundance  of  its  mineral  resources;  to  inexhaust- 
ible stores  of  lead  and  iron,  coal  and  salt,  are  to  be  added  zinc,  man- 
ganese, antimony,  plumbago,  iron  pyrites,  arsenic,  and  copper, 
nitrous  and  aluminous  earth,  potter's  clay,  marble,  freestone,  and 
granite,  sulphuretted  and  thermal  waters,  tfcc.,  and  according  to 
some  accounts,  indications  of  silver  and  cobalt  occur.  Tlie  geologi- 
cal features  of  the  country,  notwithstanding  several  partial  explora- 
tions, have  been  imperfectly  examined  ;  but  generally  speaking,  the 
prevailing  rocks  are  carboniferous  limestones  and  saliferous  sand- 
stones ;  the  Ozark  Mountains  appear  to  consist  mainly  of  masses  of 
intrusive  rocks,  granite,  sienite,  porphyry,  &c.,  and  of  altered  lime- 
stones and  sandstones.  Tlie  repository  of  the  lead-ore,  which  is  ga- 
lena or  sulphuret  of  lead,  is  magiiesian  limestone,  but  the  limits  and  ex- 
tent of  the  galeniferous  region  have  never  been  ascertained  ;  the  ore  is 
known  tobeabundant,not  only  in  the  counties  of  Washington,  Jeffer- 
son, St.  Francis,  St.  Genevieve,  Madison,  and  the  contiguous  districts, 
usually  called  the  lead  region,  and  the  seat  of  the  oldest  and  most 
extensive  diggings,  but  also  in  several  counties  west  of  tlie  Osage, 
as  Morgan  and  Cole,  and  in  several  north  of  the  Missouri;  and  the 
Wisconsin  mines  are  in  the  same  rock.  Operations  were  commenced 
here  by  the  French  as  early  as  1720,  but  were  suspended  about  twenty 
years  later,  and  were  not  again  carried  on  with  much  activity  until 
after  the  cession  of  Louisiana  to  the  United  States.  The  processes 
have  been  of  the  rudest  sort;  wherever  indications  of  the  mineral,  as 
the  galena  is  called  by  the  miners,  appear  on  the  surface,  an  excava- 
tion has  been  commenced,  and  the  whole  surface  of  the  ground  has 
been  cut  out  into  pitb  of  various  sizes,  from  three  or  four  to  twenty 
feet  in  diameter,  and  from  ten  to  fifteen  feet  in  depth,  the  digging  being 
abandoned  as  soon  as  the  depth  renders  it  inconvenient  to  throw  out 
the  earth,  or  to  hoist  out  the  mineral  by  a  simple  windlass  and  bucket ; 
blasting  is  also  resorted  to  when  a  rich  vein  is  struck  in  the  metallif- 
erous rock,  but  much  of  the  ore  is  found  loose  in  alluvial  deposits,  in 
lumps  of  various  sizes.  In  a  large  way,  it  yields  from  80  to  85  per 
cent,  of  pure  metal,  but  by  more  careful  processes  might  be  made  to 
give  considerably  more.  The  annual  produce  of  the  Missouri  dig- 
gings is  at  present  about  7,000,000  pounds,  a  portion  of  which  is 
manufactured  into  shot  and  sheet  lead.  Previous  to  1836,  the  land 
was  the  property  of  the  United  States,  and  was  leased  to  individuals 
for  short  terms  of  time,  which  led  to  wasteful  and  extravagant  modes 
of  working  the  mines;  but  in  that  year  the  mineral  lands  were  sold, 
and  some  attempts  have  already  been  made,  by  some  of  the  pro- 
prietors, to  introduce  the  scientific  processes  practised  in  Europe. 
(Schoolcraft,  Lead  Mines  of  Missouri.  Featherstonhaugh,  Geological 
Report  on  the  Elevated  Country  between  the  Missouri  and  Red  Rivers. 
Franklin  Journal,  Vol.  XXI.     Wetmore,  Gazetteer  of  Missouri.) 

"  Iron-ore  is  found  in  numerous  localities,  but  we  have  no  partic- 
ular account  of  its  character  and  quantity,  except  in  the  case  of  the 


293 


HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 


enormous  masses  in  Madison  and  Washington  counties.  The  Iron 
Mountains  of  this  district,  which  have  lately  attracted  the  attention 
of  capitalists,  are  thus  described  by  Professor  Shepard,  who  visited 
tliem  in  1837:  'The  Pilot  Knob  and  the  Iron  Mountain  are  lofty 
peaks  in  this  hilly  range,  the  former  about  GOO  feet  liigh  and  three 
miles  in  circuit,  and  the  latter  350  feet  in  height  with  a  circuit 
of  about  two  miles.  The  Pilot  Knob  may  be  denominated  a  fer- 
ruginous porphyry,  or  an  aggregate  of  feldspar  and  specular  iron,  the 
latter  occurring  of  a  fine  (steel-grained)  granular  structure,  and  con- 
taining imbedded  crystals  and  round  grains  of  feldspar,  while  the 
Iron  Mountain  is  a  homogeneous  deposit  of  pure,  massive  specular 
iron,  containing  only  in  a  few  exceedingly  rare  cases  single  crystals 
of  feldspar.  We  have,  then,  in  this  extraordinary  region,  in  the  first 
place,  hills  many  hundred  feet  high,  composed  entirely  of  a  compact, 
cherry-red  feldspar,  variegated  with  veins  of  black  by  oxide  of  iron  ; 
in  the  second  place,  the  Pilot  Knob,  a  mountain  made  up  in  large 
proportion  of  specular  iron,  the  feldspar  often  scarcely  exceeding  the 
ore  with  which  it  is  mixed  ;  and  lastly,  the  Iron  Mountain,  in  which 
the  whole  mass  is  so  nearly  pure  ore,  that  the  observer  is  forced  to 
search  with  the  closest  scrutiny  to  detect  in  it  even  a  few  solitary 
crystals  of  feldspar.  In  offering  a  statement  respecting  the  extent 
and  richness  of  the  ore,  I  hesitate  not  to  say,  that  jt  surpasses,  for 
quantity  and  quality,  every  thing  before  known  in  the  metallic  his- 
tory of  our  earth.'  (Shepard,  Report  on  the  Missouri  Iron  Mountains, 
1838.  Prospectus  of  the  Missouri  Iron  Company.)  Although  cop- 
per and  silver  are  known  to  exist,  and  have  been  successfully  worked, 
■we  have  no  definite  account  of  the  situation  and  extent  of  the  ores. 
Bituminous  coal  is  found  in  almost  every  county,  except  in  the  min- 
eral district,  and  the  beds  are  said  to  be  of  great  extent  and  of  easy 
access.  Salt-springs  are  numerous,  but  little  attention  is  paid  to  the 
manufacture  of  salt." 

Counties,  Population,  and  County  Towns. 


Counties. 


Audrain, 

Barry, 

Benton, 

Boone, 

Buchanan, 

Caldwell, 

Callaway, 

Cape  Girardeau, 

Carroll, 

Chariton, 

Clark, 

Clay, 

Clinton, 

Cole, 

Cooper, , 


Census  of  1840. 


Whites,  fopj. 


1,752 

4,518 
3,933 
10,.529 
6,004 
1,307 
8,601 
8,020 
2,155 
3,709 
2,423 
6,373 
2,530 
8,073 
8,312 


24 
6 

22 
14 

20 
3 

34 
3 

34 

15 


Slaves. 


195 

269 

261 
3,008 

227 

61 

3,142 

1,325 

268 
1,017 

420 
1,875 

191 
1,179 
2,157 


Total 
Pop. 


1,949 
4,795 
4,205 

13,.56l 
6,237 
1,458 

11,765 
9,359 
2,423 
4,746 
2,846 
8,282 
2,724 
9,286 

10,484 


County  Towns. 


Benton  C.  H. 
Columbia. 


Fulton. 
Jackson. 
Carrollton. 
Keytesville. 

Liberty. 
Plattsburg. 
Jefferson  City. 
Booneville. 


CONTEMPLATED    MORMON    EMPIRE. 


299 


Counties. 


Crawford, 

Daviess,. .  .■ 

Franklin, 

Gasconade, 

Greene, 

Howard, 

Jackson, 

Jefferson, 

Johnson, 

Lafayette, 

Lewis, 

Lincoln, , 

Linn, , 

Livingston, 

Macon, 

Madison, 

Marion, 

Miller, 

Monroe, , 

Morgan, 

Montgomery,  . .  . 

New  Madrid, 

Newton, 

Perry, 

Pettis, , 

Platte, 

Pike, 

Polk, 

Pulaski, 

Ralls, 

Randolph, 

Ray, 

R-lpify, 

Rives, < 

St.  Charles,  .  . . . 
St.  Francois,.  . . 
St.  Genevieve,. . 

St.  Louis, 

Saline, 

Scott, 

Shelby, 

Stoddard, 

Taney, 

Van  Buren..,. . 

Warren, 

Washington, .. . 
Wayne, 

Total, 


Census  of  1840. 


Whites.  Coi\i,    Slaves. 


3,377 

2,600 
6,447 
4,987 
4,693 
9,381 
6,24.5 
3,960 
3,911 
4,799 
4,966 
5,873 
2,102 
4,082 
5,808 
2,762 
7,239 
2,17U 
7,813 
3,891 
3,524 
3,748 
3,616 
4,968 
2,377 
8,049 
8,157 
7,978 
6,338 
4,450 
5,749 
5,714 
2,777 
4,086 
6,286 
2,694 
2,563 
30,505 
3,635 
5,028 
2,587 
3,081 
3,212 
4,448 
3..555 
6,248 
3,069 


2 
14 

I 

2 
44 

6 
12 

4 
26 

9 

4 

2 

1 

22 

42 

1 

5 

4 

20 


14 

1 

C 

17 

9 

1 

11 

12 

5 

2 

4 

28 

16 

37 

858 

8 

18 

11 

1 

12 

31 

2 

42 

12 


184 

134 

1,054 

342 

677 

3,683 

1,361 

324 

556 

1,990 

1,065 

1,572 

143 

241 

225 

611 

2.342 

111 

1,687 

512 

827 

801 

1G9 

778 

552 

858 

2,472 

462 

190 

1,209 

1,437 

834 

77 

636 

1,597 

501 

548 

4,616 

1,615 

928 

4.'^8 

71 

40 

214 

696 

923 

322 


323,8381,5741  58,240  363,702 


Total 
I'op. 


3,561 

2,736 
7,515 
5,330 
5,37 

13,108 
7,612 
4,296 
4,471 
6,815 
6.040 
7,449 
2,245 
4,325 
6,034 
3,395 
9,623 
2,282 
9,505 
4,407 
4,371 
4,.554 
3,790 
5,760 
2,930 
8,913 

10,646 
8,449 
6,529 
5,670 
7,198 
6,-553 
2,856 
4,726 
7,91 1 
3,21 1 
3,148 

35,979 
5,258 
5,974 
3,056 
3,153 
3,21  ■;4 
4, 6: '3 
4,2r.3 
7,213 
3,103 


County  /Towns. 


Little  Piney. 

Newport. 

Mount  Sterling. 

Springfield. 

Fayette. 

Independence. 

Herculaneum. 

Lexington. 
Monticello. 
Troy. 


Fredericktown. 
Palmyra. 

Monroe  C.  H. 
Versailles. 
Danville. 
New  Madria. 

Perrysville. 
Georgetown. 

Bowling  Green. 

VVaynesville. 
New  London. 
Randolph. 
Richmond. 
Van  Buren 

St.  Charles. 
Farmington. 
St.  Genevieve. 
St.  Louis. 
Walnut  Farm. 
Benton. 


Potosi. 
Greenville. 


300  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

Jefferson  City,  (a  beautiful  and  commanding  place,) 
the  seat  of  government,  is  situated  near  the  geographical 
centre  of  the  State,  and  is  destined  for  future  g-reatness. 

Independence,  in  Jackson  county,  as  remarked  else- 
where, which  is  situated  in  the  very  heart  of  this  delightful, 
fertile,  and  healthy  country,  is  considered  their  Zion,  or 
haven  of  ultimate  repose;  but  as  it  is  not  a  commercial 
mart,  St.  Louis  has  been  designated  as  their  great  empo- 
rium—  the  Joppa  to  their  Jerusalem.  St.  Louis  is  situated 
on  the  west  bank  of  the  Mississippi,  "  17  miles  below  the 
mouth  of  the  Missouri,  175  miles  above  the  mouth  of  the 
Ohio,  1350  from  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  860  below  the  Falls 
of  St.  Anthony,  850  by  the  post  routes  from  Washington, 
and  1200  from  Santa  Fe  by  way  of  Independence." 
The  advantages  of  this  situation  are  but  beginning  to  be 
appreciated.  From  its  position,  St.  Louis  commands  the 
internal  trade  of  one  half  the  North  American  continent, 
and  will,  undoubtedly,  at  no  distant  period,' be  one  of  the 
largest  cities  of  the  world ;  placed  as  it  is  in  the  centre  of 
a  most  fertile,  salubrious,  and  delightful  country,  with  the 
mighty  Mississippi  stretching  hundreds  of  miles  upon  each 
side  of  it,  and  the  no  less  colossal  Missouri  emptying  its 
thousand  leagues  of  waters  at  the  very  doors  of  its  citizens, 
and  with  two  other  great  rivers,  the  Ohio  and  the  Illinois, 
bringing  it  the  tribute  of  their  navigable  waters.  The  lat- 
ter river  will,  also,  by  its  union  with  Lake  Michigan  by 
a  canal,  bring  to  St.  Louis  the  commerce  of  the  vast  coun- 
tries which  stretch  north  of  the  great  lakes,  and  also  that 
of  a  large  portion  of  their  shores.  I  cannot  but  admire 
the  judgment  with  which  the  Mormon  leaders  selected  this, 
the  very  heart  of  North  America,  as  the  chief  seat  of  their 
vast  empire.  Could  they  have  succeeded  in  erecting  there 
an  independent  military  organization,  they  would  have 
been  able  to  control,  in  time,  almost  the  whole  continent. 
But  Providence,  which,  for  its  own  wise,  though  inscruta- 
ble purposes,  permitted  them  to  proceed,  for  a  season,  un- 
checked in  their  audacious  career,  has  at  length  interposed, 
and  will  scatter  them  and  their  wild,  Utopian  schemes, 
like  the  sand  of  the  desert  before  the  blast  of  the  furious 
tornado. 

"  Product/re  Industry.     Tlie  vast  prairies  of  wliich  the  greater  part 
of  Missouri  is  composed,  furnish  admirable  natural  pastures  for  the 


CONTEMPLATED    MORMON    EMPIRE.  301 

live  slock  of  the  new  comers,  and  grazing  lias,  therefore,  formed  an 
important  branch  of  agricultural  industry  in  this  State.  Black  cattle, 
horses,  and  hogs,  are  raised  in  great  numbers  for  exportation.  '  The 
business  of  rearing  cattle  is  almost  reduced  to  the  simple  operation 
of  turning  them  out  upon  the  prairies,  and  letting  them  fatten  until 
the  owners  think  proper  to  claim  the  tribute  of  their  flesh.'  Salted 
beef,  tallow,  hides,  pork,  and  live  stock,  are  important  articles  of 
expert;  the  number  of  hogs  slaughtered  for  exportation  in  183(j,  is 
stated  at  nearly  1(10,000.  {Western  Jiddress  Dircctorij.)  Cotton  is 
raised  in  the  southern  part  of  the  State,  but  not  in  considerable 
quantities;  tobacco  is  more  extensively  grown,  and  hemp,  wheat, 
Indian  corn,  and  other  cereals  are  cultivated  with  success.  The 
only  mineral  which  has  been  much  worked  is  lead,  which  is  in  part 
exported  in  pigs,  and  in  part  manufactured  into  sheet  lead  and  shot. 
But  the  beds  of  coal  and  lime,  the  profusion  and  good  quality  of  the 
iron-ore.  and  the  heavy  cost  of  transporting  iron  from  tlie  sea  to  these 
reiiiote  regions,  will  soon  make  that  metal  one  of  the  most  valuable 
-products  of  the  Slate.  Some  lumber,  furs,  and  skins,  are  procured 
from  iVIissouri,  but  most  of  the  last-named  are  now  brouglit  from 
beyond  lier  borders.  The  Santa  Fe  trade  employs  several  hundred 
men,  with  40  or  50  wagons,  and  the  caravans  bring  home  specie, 
wool,  and  mules,  in  return  for  powder,  rifles,  knives,  cotton  and 
woollen  goods,  &c." 

Hi/giene. — Persons  removing  to  the  west  should,  par- 
ticularly during  their  accliniateraent,  wear  flannel  next  the 
skin,  avoid  the  heavy  dews  and  fogs,  and  make  free  use  of 
the  Tomato,  (which  is  one  of  the  very  best  alteratives  and 
deobstruents  known  to  \he  Materia  Mcdha  —  possessing, 
in  an  eminent  degree,  the  virtues  of  calomel  divested  of  the 
deleterious  qualities,)  by  which  they  will,  in  most  cases, 
avoid  all  those  harassing  bilious  aifections,  and  obstruc- 
tions, to  which  unacclimated  persons  are  so  frequently 
subjected.  The  west,  in  many  parts,  is  as  healthy  as  any 
other  portion  of  the  globe;  but  in  all  migratory  operations, 
a  certain  acclimation  has  to  be  passed  through,  in  which, 
however,  with  proper  care,  thei-e  i^  no  danger  tnhatrvcr. 
In  the  Great  West,  the  seat  of  this  contemplated  vast 
^.Vestern  Empire,  the  water  is  pure,  the  land  fertile,  the 
climate  salubrious,  and  the  beauty  of  the  scenery  un- 
surpassed—  presenting  at  once  the  ne  plus  ultua  of 
an  earthly  Elysium. 

Illinois  and  Iowa.  These  extensive  regions  of  coun- 
try, of  superior  excellence  and  surpassing  beauty,  are  not 
very  dissimilar  to  the  State  already  described,  and  were  to 
form  the  remainincr  portion  of  the  vast  domain  of  the  nu- 
26 


302  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

cleus  before  which  nations,  kingdoms,  ancl  empire?,  were  to 
fall.  As  the  gueat  im.ot  and  lkagie  is  now  fully  before 
the  nation,  and  as  my  limits  will  not  allow  me  to  prosecute 
the  subject  further  in  this  Expose,  I  will  close  this  chapter 
with  the  single  remark,  that  the  public  weal  requires  the 
vigilant  eye  of  the  body  politic  to  look  well  to  the 

WEST  1 


AN    APPEAL    TO    THE    PUBLIC. 

I  have  elsewhere  shown  the  danger  that  menaces  our 
civil  and  political  institutions  from  the  machinations  of 
the  Mormon  Lnpostor,  and  I  now  wish  to  appeal  to  the 
feelings  and  the  fears  of  the  Christian  community,  and  to 
urge  all  good  and  religious  men  to  unite  their  efforts 
for  the  purpose  of  checking  and  suppressing  this  Monster 
in  his  career  of  wickedness  and  blasphemy.  The  develop- 
ments I  have  made,  and  the  documents  I  have  produced, 
are  surely  sufficient  to  convince  every  man  of  sense  and 
foresight,  that  Joe  Smith  meditates  the  total  overthrow,  not 
only  of  our  government  and  of  our  social  fabric,  but  of  all 
creeds  and  religions  that  are  not  in  perfect  accordance 
with  his  own  bloody  and  stupid  imposture.  The  course 
he  has  hitherto  pursued,  particularly  in  Missouri,  shows 
clearly  as  the  noonday  sun,  that,  had  he  but  the  power,  he 
does  not  lack  the  will,  to  propagate  his  doctrines  by  the 
cannon  and  the  bayonet.  The  Mormons,  as  soon  as  they 
acquired  a  majority,  would  proceed  to  exterminate,  or  con- 
vert forcibly,  all  those,  whether  Christians  or  Heathens, 
whom  they  style  Gentiles,  in  distinction  from  their  saintly 
selves.  Even  were  this  not  to  be  inferred  from  their 
present  conduct,  we  could  readily  foretell  it  from  the  ex- 
perience of  the  course  of  such  fanatics  afforded  us  by 
history. 

The  dreadful  atrocities  perpetrated  by  the  Jews  when 
they  rose  to  follow  the  numerous  pretended  Messiahs  who 
have  appeared  since  Christ,  are  well  known  to  every  reader, 
as  also  are  the  miserable  calamities  which  befell  the  He- 


AN    APPEAL    TO    THE    PUBLIC.  303 

brew  nation  in  consequence  of  their  infatuation  after  these 
villaiious  impostors. 

When  Barchochebas,  or,  as  he  styled  himself,  the  Son  of 
a  Star,  had  caused  an  insurrection  against  the  Romans, 
the  Jews,  believing  him  to  be  their  long-promised  Savior, 
flocked  to  his  standard  in  immense  numbers,  and  for  a  lon^ 
time  defied  the  whole  power  of  the  Roman  empire,  and 
treated  with  the  most  abominable  cruelty  those  of  the 
Gentiles  who  fell  into  their  hands.  They  slaughtered,  in 
the  course  of  their  rebellion,  not  less  than  one  hundred 
thousand  Roman  citizens,  and  they  were  themselves  finally 
subdued  only  by  the  sacrifice  of  more  than  half  a  million 
of  lives. 

In  the  fifth  century  appeared  another  of  these  pretenders 
to  the  Messiahship,  who,  in  the  Island  of  Candia,  so  grossly 
deluded  his  countrymen,  that  hundreds  threw  themselves, 
at  his  command,  into  the  sea,  because  he  had  promised  to 
conduct  them  safely  through  it  to  the  Promised  Land. 

In  the  sixth  century  appeared  one  named  Julian,  who, 
after  a  long  and  bloody  war,  was  captured  by  the  generals 
of  Justinian,  and  put  to  death,  together  with  his  chief 
adher-ents. 

In  1157,  Spain  was  very  much  disturbed  by  another, 
who  so  excited  against  himself  the  anger  of  the  Mo- 
hammedans, that  nearly  all  the  Jews  in  Granada  were 
massacred  for  supporting  him  in  his  insane  pretensions. 

Towards  the  close  of  the  twelfth  century,  also,  there 
arose,  in  the  province  of  Hamadan,  in  Persia,  an  impostor 
of  no  common  quality,  the  famous  David  El  David,  or, 
as  he  is  often  termed,  David  Alroy.  He  defeated,  in 
several  sanguinary  battles,  the  sultans  of  Roum  and  of 
Persia,  overthrew  the  army  of  the  calipli,  and  even  cap- 
tured Bagdad,  the  capital  of  the  Mohammedan  empire, 
where  he  reigned  for  some  time  in  great  splendor,  and  was 
finally  captured  and  killed  by  Alp  Arslan,  king  ofKarasme. 
His  career,  which  caused  the  almost  entire  destruction 
of  the  flourishing  Jewish  communities  in  the  neigliboriiood 
of  the  Tigris  and  Euphrates,  has  been  made  the  sul)ject 
of  a  most  splendid  and  eloquent  work,  by  the  younger 
DTsraeli. 

It  is  worthy  of  remark  that  all  these,  and  scores  of  other 


804  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

Jewish  impostors,  pretended,  as  Joe  Smith  now  does,  that 
they  were  raised  up  of  God  to  fulial  the  ancient  prophecies, 
and  restore  the  Jews  to  their  Promised  Land.  Like  Smith, 
they  based  their  claims  on  a  literal  interpretation  of  proph- 
ecy, found  manifold  texts  as  explicit  as  the  Mormon  wall, 
the  stick  of  Ephraim,  the  flying  angel,  and  the  others 
alleged  in  favor  of  the  Mormon  pretended  revelation. 
They  added  miracles  and  prodigies  wherever  they  were 
wanted,  and  found  dupes  enough  to  believe  and  run  after 
them,  and  sacrifice  all  earthly  good  to  their  preposterous 
claims,  as  the  Mormons  now  do  to  the  claims  of  Smith.* 

But  the  most  striking  historical  parallel  to  the  course  of 
tlie  Mormons,  and  one,  too,  from  which  Smith  and  his  com- 
rades have  derived  the  ideas  of  many  of  their  proceedings, 
is  contained  in  the  career  of  the  Anabaptists. 

They  appeared  in  the  year  1525,  in  Germany,  during 
the  religious  excitement  and  confusion  produced  by  the 
attempts  of  Luther  and  his  coadjutors  to  reform  the  Papacy. 
They  so  remarkably  resembled  the  Mormons,  that  it  is 
quite  evident  the  latter  have  taken  them  for  models,  and 
have  copied  their  doings  with  as  much  accuracy  as  the 
spirit  of  the  age  would  permit.  The  first  leader  of  the 
Anabaptists  was  a  low,  ignorant  fellow,  named  Thomas 
Munster,  who,  like  Joe  Smith,  was  at  the  same  time  their 
prophet  and  military  commander.  They,  precisely  again 
like  the  Mormons,  gave  themselves  out  for  "  Latter  Day 
Saints"  and  professed  to  be  chosen  by  the  Almighty  as 
instruments  to  produce  the  promised  millennium  reign  of 
Christ  on  earth.  They  believed,  likewise,  that  they  were 
especial  favorites  of  Heaven  in  every  respect,  and  that  they 
were,  when  they  wished  it,  favored  with  familiar  personal 
intercourse  with  the  Deity,  and  from  him  constantly  re- 
ceived revelations  and  instructions.  They  also  believed 
that  their  faith  rendered  them  invulnerable  to  the  assaults 
of  their  enemies,  and  that,  like  the  Hebrew  leaders  of  old, 
they  were  empowered  to  confound  and  to  overthrow,  by 
the  most  stupendous  miracles,  the  adversaries  of  the  Lord 
and  of  his  church.  They  also  pretended  to  have  frequent 
visions  of  all  kinds,  and  related  most  wonderful  tales  of 
their  interviews  and  combats  with  evil  spirits.     They  also, 

*  Prof.  Turner. 


AN  APPEAL  TO  THE  PUBLIC.  305 

like  the  Mormons,  indulged  their  fancies  in  prophesying 
the  most  horrid  calamities  to  their  enemies,  and  the  greatest 
convulsions  in  the  natural  and  political  world.  Such  was 
their  enthusiastic  zeal,  that  they  soon  excited  the  peasants 
and  ignorant  classes  of  Germany  to  a  pitch  of  fonaticism 
unequalled  in  human  history  since  the  days  of  Mahomet. 
Their  leader,  Munster,  at  length  asserted  that  God  had 
commanded  him  to  resort  to  arms,  in  order  more  speedily 
to  bring  about  the  millennium  and  the  reign  of  Christ  and 
his  sanits  on  the  earth  ! 

Accordingly  he  armed  and  assembled  a  vast  multitude 
of  his  followers,  composed  altogether  of  the  brutalized 
peasants  of  Germany,  in  whom  ages  of  political  and  reli- 
gious oppression  had  almost  extinguished  the  last  vestige  of 
resemblance  to  Him  in  whose  image  they  were  created  at 
the  beginning,  and  proclaiming  himself  King  of  Zion, 
began  to  plunder  and  devastate  the  towns  and  castles  of 
Germany,  and  to  slaughter,  in  the  most  cruel  manner,  the 
classes  who,  still  retaining  their  senses,  endeavored  to  check 
his  enormities.  At  length  he  was  met  in  battle  by  the 
imperial  forces,  and  was  defeated  and  captured,  after  five 
thousand  of  his  deluded  followers  had  been  slain,  and  the 
rest  routed.  Munster  was,  as  he  richly  deserved,  publicly 
executed  soon  after  he  was  taken  prisoner. 

This  defeat,  a«d  the  death  of  their  prophet  and  general, 
though  it  checked  for  a  time  the  career  of  these  fanatics, 
did  not  entirely  suppress  their  zeal  or  their  outrages.  A 
few  years  afterwards,  they,  by  divine  revelation,  as  they  pre- 
tended, placed  John  Matthias  at  their  head,  who,  bent  on 
following  out  the  plans  of  the  martyred  Munster,  issued  a 
proclamation  in  the  style  of  those  so  profusely  given  to  the 
world  by  Joe  Smith,  commanding  the  saints  to  assemble 
at  the  New  Zion,  which  Matthias  declared  was  the  city  of 
Munster.  He  pretended  that  God  would  from  tlience 
enable  them  so  to  extend  their  power,  that  all  the  kings  of 
the  earth  would  submit  to  the  dominion  of  the  prophet, 
and  the  whole  world  be  conquered  by  his  holy  legions. 
They  proceeded  in  good  earnest  to  carry  their  insane 
plans  into  effect,  and,  after  committing  numberless  atro- 
cities, were  besieged  by  the  civil  authorities,  and,  after  a 
long  and  terrible  siege,  during  which  they  defended  them- 
2G*° 


306  mSTOKY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

selves  with  tl)e  greatest  resolution,  Mount  Zion  was  taken 
by  storm,  and  the  German  Joe  Smith,  with  upwards  of  a 
hundred  thousand  of  his  adherents,  was  put  to  the  sword. 

It  is  unnecessary  to  do  more  than  to  allude  to  the  well- 
known  history  of  Mahomet,  who,  fatally  for  mankind, 
was  enabled  to  carry  out,  to  the  fullest  extent,  schemes 
similar  to  those  attempted  by  the  persons  I  have  mentioned 
above.  There  is  no  doubt  that  Joe  Smith  would,  if  he 
possessed  the  capacity,  imitate  the  great  Arabian  impostor, 
even  in  his  wars  and  conquests. 

And  now,  my  fellow-citizens,  permit  me  to  appeal  to  you 
again  and  again,  on  this  most  momentous  subject,  and 
urge  you,  in  the  name  of  all  that  you  hold  dear  and  sacred, 
to  spare  no  efforts  to  put  down  this  hydra-headed  monster 
of  Mormonism,  before  it  swallows  up  all  that  is  valuable  to 
you  in  this  life  or  in  the  next.  Unite  yourselves,  and  stand 
not  idly  by,  suffering  a  few  zealous  individuals  to  fight,  sin- 
gle-handed, the  battles  of  humanity  and  religion. 

If  this  Mormon  villain  is  suffered  to  carry  out  his  plans, 
I  warn  the  people  of  these  United  States,  that  less  than 
twenty  years  will  see  them  involved  in  a  civil  war  of  the 
most  formidable  character.  They  will  have  to  encounter 
a  numerous  and  ferocious  enemy,  excited  to  the  utmost  by 
fanaticism  and  by  pretended  revelations  from  God,  and 
Jed  on  by  reckless,  ambitious,  and,  in  some  respects,  able 
scoundrels,  who  will  not  pause  in  the  execution  of  their 
projects,  even  though  to  accomplish  them  they  should 
deluge  this  fair  land  with  the  blood  of  her  sons,  and  exter- 
minate the  results  of  the  toil  and  the  civilization  of  more 
than  two  centuries.  I  know  that  these  things  are  so.  I 
know  that  the  Mormon  leaders  entertain  these  designs, 
and  I  know  the  strength  and  the  force  that  a  few  rnore 
years  of  impunity  will  enable  them  to  bring  to  the  accom- 
plishment of  tlieir  treasonable  projects.  In  proof  of  what 
I  now  assert,  I  appeal  with  confidence  to  the  documents 
and  testimony  contained  in  this  volume,  and  I  ask 
every  patriotic  and  religious  chizen  to  examine  it  carefully 
and  dispassionately,  and  then  say  if  my  statements  are 
not  supported  as  strongly  as  those  of  any  man  need  be. 
And  yet  what  I  have  given  is  not  a  tithe  of  what  might  be 
brought  forward    upon   the  subject,  had   I   but  the  time 


EXTRACTS    FROM   A   MISSOURI    DOCUMENT.  307 

to  gather  it.  What  I  here  present  has  been  collected  in 
haste,  and  in  apart  of  the  Union  distant  from  that  in  which 
knowledge  relating  to  Mormonism  can  be  most  readily  ob- 
tained. Many  persons,  upon  whom  I  relied  for  evidence, 
and  who  live  in  the  Holy  City,  have  been  deterred  by 
threats  and  apprehensions  from  testifying,  though,  as  this 
work  will  show,  many  others  have  nobly  come  forward,  and 
with  great  moral  courage  have  stated  what  they  know. 

It  is  to  vigorous  and  united  effort  that  we  must  look  for 
the  final  suppression  of  Mormonism  ;  and  the  citizen  and 
the  Christian  is  highly  culpable,  who  stands  by  in  apathy, 
and,  with  folded  arms,  coolly  looks  upon  the  progress  of  a 
system  that  will  eventually  destroy,  if  not  timely  checked, 
our  religion  and  our  liberties,  and  involve  us  and  our 
country  in  the  most  direful  and  irretrievable  calamities. 

The  Mormons,  strong  already  in  their  numbers  and  their 
zeal,  are  increasing  like  the  rolling  snowball,  and  will 
eventually  fall  with  the  force  of  an  avalanche  upon  the  fair 
fabric  of  our  institutions,  unless  the  people,  roused  to 
resist  their  villany,  quit  the  forum  for  the  field,  and,  meet- 
ing the  Mormons  with  their  own  arms,  crush  the  reptile 
before  it  has  grown  powerful  enough  to  sting  them  to  the 
death. 


EXTRACTS   FROM  A  DOCUMENT 

PUBLISHED  BY  ORDi  R  OF  THE  GENERAL  ASSEMBLY 

OF  MISSOURL 

EXTRACT    FROM    GOVERNOR    BOGGS'S    MESSAGE   OF    1840. 

"  Since  your  last  session,  the  unpleasant  difficulties  between  a 
portion  of  the  citizens  of  our  State  and  the  Mormons  have  entirely- 
subsided,  with  th€  exception  of  some  slight  interruptions  on  our  north- 
eastern border.  After  that  infatuated  and  deluded  sect  had  left  our 
State,  they  industriously  propagated  tliroughout  the  Union  the  most 
exagorerated  details  of  our  difficulties,  and  the  foulest  calumnies 
against  our  citizens.  In  some  of  our  eastern  cities,  missionaries  of 
their  creed  were  employed,  daily  making  converts  to  their  cause  by 


808  HISTORY  OF  THE  SAINTS. 

proclaiming  the  cruelties  which  they  alleged  they  had  endured  at 
the  hands  of  our  authorities.  The  report  of  our  alleged  barbarities 
has  not  been  confined  to  our  Union,  but  even  at  this  day  in  Europe 
tliey  are  made  the  groundwork  of  proselyting,  and  their  orators  find 
it  to  their  interest  to  distort  the  acts  into  a  persecution,  Mhich,  in 
every  religious  excitement  that  has  marked  the  history  of  the  earth, 
has  always  been  found  the  most  effectual  weapon  of  conversion. 

"  In  all  intestine  commotions,  particularly  when  mingled  with  re- 
Jigious  fervor,  it  frequently  happens  that  cases  occur  of  peculiar 
hardship  and  unusual  distress,  and  when  public  sympathy  is  excited 
in  tlieir  behalf,  these  unavoidable  consequences  of  civil  dissension 
may  easily  be  magnified  into  barbarous  cruelly.  That  such  cases 
arose  in  the  course  of  the  difliculty,  I  do  not  doubt.  But  they  must 
be  attributed  to  the  e.Kcited  nature  of  the  contest  of  the  parties,  and 
not  to  any  dijaire,  on  the  part  of  our  constituted  authorities,  to  wilfully 
or  cruelly  oppre.ss  them. 

"These  people  had  violated  the  Inws  of  the  land  by  open  and 
avowed  resistance  to  them ;  they  had  undertaken,  without  the  aid 
of  the  civil  authority,  to  redress  their  real  or  fancied  grievances; 
they  had  instituted  among  themselves  a  government  of  their  own, 
independent  of  and  in  opposition  to  the  government  of  this  State ; 
they  had,  at  an  inclement  season  of  the  year,  driven  the  inhabitants 
of  an  entire  county  from  their  homes,  ravaged  their  crops,  and  de- 
stroyed their  dwellings.  Under  these  circumstances,  it  became  the 
imperious  duty  of  the  Executive  to  interpo.se  and  exercise  the  pow- 
ers with  \\hich  he  was  invested,  to  protect  the  lives  and  propertj'  of 
our  citizens,  to  restore  order  and  tranquillity  to  the  country,  and 
maintain  the  supremacy  of  our  laws. 

"  We  owe  to  our  reputation,  both  at  home  and  abroad,  the  duty 
of  cleansing  every  aspersion  that  may  rest  upon  it.  Our  State  char- 
acter Siiould  be  held  equally  as  dear  as  oiu'  individual  reputation, 
and  we  should  use  the  same  exertion  in  maintaining  the  one  as 
spotless  as  the  other.  Full  testimony  as  to  all  the  necessary  facts 
of  that  controversy  has  been  preserved  or  can  easily  be  procured. 
Written  evidence,  on  both  sides,  has  been  filed  among  the  papers  of 
your  last  session,  and  forms  part  also  of  the  records  of  several  of  your 
courts.  The  facts,  as  they  occurred,  can  be  presented  to  the  world 
upon  proof  perfectly  conclusive,  and  the  reputation  of  our  State  can 
be  rescued  from  reproach  by  an  exposition  of  the  true  causes  and 
events  of  these  dijllcultics. 

"  In  recommending  the  publication  of  this  testimony,  I  have  no 
care  about  its  effect  upon  the  principles  of  that  sect.  Our  constitu- 
tion lias  given  us  the  high  privilege  of  religious  independence,  and 
left  the  w^orship  of  the  Supreme  to  the  unfettered  will  of  every  mem- 
ber of  the  community.  If  true,  the  creed  of  that  sect  will  ultimately 
triumph  ;  if  false,  it  will  '  die  amidst  its  worshippers.'  To  explain 
the  attitude  which  we  have  been  made  to  assume,  I  would  recom- 
mend the  publication  of  all  the  evidence  relating  to  the  occurrence, 
and  distributino-  the  same  to  the  chief  authorities  of  each  State  " 


EXTRACTS    fro:-!    A    MISSOURI    DOCUMENT.  309 

TESTIMONY    ACCOMPANYIiNG   THE    MESSAGE. 
Affidavit  of  Adam  Black. 

"  State   of  IMissouri,  / 
County  of  Daviess,       j 

"  Before  me,  William  Dryden,  one  of  the  Justices  of  the 
Peace  of  said  county,  personally,  came  Adam  Black,  who,  bein^ 
duly  sworn  according  to  law,  deposeth  and  saith,  tliat  on  or 
about  the  8th  day  of  August,  1838,  in  the  county  of  Daviess, 
there  came  an  armed  force  of  men,  said  to  be  154,  to  the  best 
of  my  information,  and  surrounded  his  house  and  family,  and  threat- 
ened him  with  instant  death  if  he  did  not  sign  a  certain  instrument 
of  writing,  binding  himself,  as  a  Justice  of  the  Peace  for  said  county 
of  Daviess,  not  to  molest  the  people  called  Mormons,  and  tlireatened 
the  lives  of  myself  and  other  individuals,  and  did  say  they  intended 
to  make  every  citizen  sign  such  obligation,  and  fiu'ther  said  they 
intended  to  have  satisfaction  for  abuse  they  liad  received  on  Monday 
previous,  and  they  would  not  submit  to  the  laws.      *         *         * 

"Adam  Black. 

"  Sworn  to  and  subscribed  this  28th  day  of  August,  1838. 

"  W.  Dryden,  Justice  of  the  Peace 


D.  Ashby  and  Others  to  the  Governor. 

"Brunswick,   Sejilember  I,  1S38. 

"His  Excellency  Lilbur.v  W.  Boggs  : 

"Dear  Sir,— 

"  Our  country  is  in  a  complete  ferment,  and  our  families  are 
rendered  daily  unhappy  in  consequence  of  the  reports  which  are  con- 
stantly coming  in  concerning  the  hostile  intentions  of  the  Mormons 
and  their  allies,  as  it  is  currently  reported  and  believed  that  they 
have  ingratiated  themselves  with  the  Indians,  and  indeed  they  say 
so,  to  assist  them  in  their  diabolical  career. 

"  The  fears  of  the  people  are  greatly  excited,  and  nothing  is  now 
talked  of  but  the  contemplated  struggle,  and  plans  seem  to  be  devis- 
ing all  around  us  for  the  most  efficient  protection  against  their 
encroachments.  A.  deadly  hostility  is  kept  constantly  alive  on  their 
borders,  and  our  old  neighbors  and  friends  are  petitioning  help  from 
abroad  to  relieve  them  in  their  present  difficulties.  Being  remote 
from  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the  Mormon  troubles,  we  can  give 
but  little  of  authentic  data  on  which  to  act;  but  we  are  strongly  of 
opinion  that  there  is  a  deeply-laid  scheme  existing  among  these  fanat- 
ics, that  will  be  highly  destructive  to  character^  and  at  once  subver- 
sive of  the  rights  and  liberties  of  the  people. 

"  We  have  the  best  authority  for  believing  that,  in  their  public 
t(!achings,  tlieir  people  are  taught  to  believe  and  expect  that  im- 
mense numbers  of  Indians,  of  various  tribes,  arc  only  waiting  the 
signal  for  a  general  rise,  when,  as  they  state  it,  the  '  Flying  or 
Destroying  Jingel '  will  go  through  the  land,  and  work  the  general 


310  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

destruction  of  all  that  are  not  Mormons.  It  is  not  our  object  at  the 
present  to  trouble  you  witli  a  detail  of  all  the  reports  in  reference  to 
this  aflair  ;  but  we  will  state  a  case  within  our  own  knowk'dge,  com 
ing  from  a  man  who  left  this  neighborhood  to  join  the  Mormons, 
and  who  has  the  reputation,  among  tlie  citizens  of  Chariton  county, 
for  a  number  of  years,  of  being  a  man  of  strict  veracity.  He  has 
returned  perfectly  satisfied  that  their  object  is  every  thing  opposite 
to  Christian  feeling  and  principle.  The  following  statement  which 
he  makes,  is  given  at  his  own  request,  and  under  his  own  hand  :  — 
'  I  have  resided  among  the  people  called  Mormons  about  five 
months,  during  which  time  I  have  had  fivquent  opportunities  of 
meeting  with  them,  both  in  their  public  and  private  associations, 
and  have  sought  every  possible  opportunity  of  acquiring  informa- 
tion. I  distinctly  recollect  hearing  Josepli  Smith,  the  Propiiet,  state, 
in  a  public  discourse,  that  he  had  fuu/tecii  thousand  men,  not  belong- 
ing to  t!ie  Church,  read}^  at  a  moment's  warning,  which  was  gener- 
ally understood  to  mean  Indians.  It  was  a  very  common  source  of 
rejoicing  among  all  classes,  even  the  women  and  children  partici- 
pating, that  the  time  had  arrived  when  all  the  wicked  should  be 
destroyed  from  the  face  of  the  earth,  and  that  the  Indians  should  be 
the  principal  means  by  which  this  object  should  be  accomplisiied. 
There  is  a  common  feeling  amongst  them,  amounting  to  a  conspira- 
cy to  protect  one  another  against  the  civil  officers  of  the  country,  even 
IF  IT  SHOULD  BE  ATTENDED  WITH  DEATH.  The  public  teacliers 
have  recently  been  very  urgent  in  soliciting  the  people  to  fly  to 
their  towns  for  protection,  as  the  time  had  arrived  when  the  '  Flying 
Angel '  should  pass  through  the  land,  accompanied  by  the  Indians, 
to  accomplish  the  work  of  destruction,  and  furthermore  stating  that 
they  will  have  enough  to  do  to  protect  themselves  while  this  work 
is  going  on.  Nathan  Marsh.' 

"  From  the  above  facts,  added  to  the  general  reports,  we  have, 
with  all  due  consideration,  thought  proper  to  suggest  to  your  E.xcel- 
lency  the  propriety  of  issuing  orders  to  the  militia,  so  that  in  case  of 
necessity  they  may  be  called  on  according  to  the  exigency  of  cir- 
cumstances. 

"  Your  obedient  servants,  Daniel  Ashby, 

James  Kevte, 
Sterling  Price." 


The.  Clerk  of  the  Circuit  Court  of  Carroll  County  to  the  Governor. 

"  Cakuollton,  Jlissouri,  September  6,  IS2S. 

"  Hon.  L.  W.  Boggs,  Governor  of  Missouri. 
"Sir,— 

"  I  am  requested  by  the  Committee  of  Safety  appointed 
for  Carroll  county,  to  forward  to  your  Honor  a  copy  of  an  affidavit 
made  by  John  N.  Sapp,  the  contents  of  which,  tliey  have  every  lea- 


EXTRACTS    FROM    A    MISSOURI    DOCUMENT.  311 

son  to  believe,  are  true ;  they  wish  your  Honor,  if  you  should  con- 
sider the  same  advisable,  to  acquaint  the  Indian  agents  on  our  fron- 
tier with  that  part  of  the  affidavit  which  relates  to  the  Indians. 
"  I  have  the  honor  to  be, 

"  With  great  respect, 

"  Your  obedient  servant, 

" Joseph  Dicksox. 
"  '  State  op  Missodri,  ) 
County  of  Cavroll.     j 

"  '  I,  John  N.  Sapp,  do  solemnly  swear  that  I  resided  in  Daviess 
county.  State  aforesaid,  for  about  the  space  of  five  months,  and  was 
a  member  of  the  Church  of  the  people  styled  Mormons,  and  that  1 
left  them  about  the  15th  day  of  August  last  by  stealth.  When  I 
left  them,  they  (said  people  styled  Slormons)  were  building  block- 
houses, and  calculated  this  fall  to  build  fortifications  for  the  pro- 
tection of  themselves  and  families  in  time  of  war,  for  which  tliey 
were  making  every  arrangement ;  and  the  understanding  is,  that 
each  man  has  to  cultivate  one  acre  of  land,  and  if  the  produce  raised 
on  said  acre  is  not  sufficient  for  their  mainteinance,  and  that  of  their 
families,  they  are  to  take  the  balance  from  the  Rlissourians,  (thereby 
meaning  the  people  of  other  denominations ;)  aud  I  do  further  say 
tliere  are  betwixt  eight  and  ten  hundred  men,  well  armed  and 
equipped,  who  have  taken  an  oath  to  support  Joseph  Smith  and  Lyman 
Wight,  in  opposition  to  the  laws  of  the  State  of  Missouri,  or  other- 
wise, which  said  men  are  called  Danitcs;  and  1  was  a  member  of 
said  body  of  Danites,  and  have  taken  the  above  oath ;  and  I  do  fur- 
ther sa}',  I  have  heard  Lyman  Wight  say,  tlie}^  had  twelve  men, 
[the  Destroyi.ng  Angel,]  of  their  Church,  among  the  Indians, 
and  that  their  object  was  to  induce  the  India.ns  to  join  them  (the  said 
Mormons)  in  making  war  upon  the  Missourians,  and  they  expected 
to  be  fuUv  prepared  to  commence  war  this  fall,  or  next  spring  at 
furthest.  'And  I  also  say,  the  Danites  aforesaid  arc  sworn  to  cow- 
hide any  person  or  j)crsons  icho  mnij  say  avght  against  Joseph  Smith 
and  Lyman  Wiijlit,  and  if  that  will  not  prevent  them  from  speaking 
about  said  Smith  and  Wight,  then  they  are  to  assassinate  them. 

his 
'"John  N.  ><!  Sapp. 
mark. 

"  '  Subscribed  and  sworn  to  before  me,  Josepi/  Dickson,  Clerk  of 
the  County  Court,  within  and  for  the  county  of  Carroll,  State  of 
Missouri,  on  the  4th  of  September,  1838, 

"'Joseph  Dickson,  Clerk.'" 


Stalement  of  William  Dryden. 

"  To  His  Excellency  L.  W.  Boggs, 

Governor  of  the  State  of  Missouri: 

"  Your  petitioner,  William  Dryden,  an  acting  Justice  of  the  Peace, 
within  and  for  Daviess  county,  would  respectfully  represent,  tliat 
the  counties  of  Daviess,  Caldwell,  and  Livingston,  are   settlsd,  in 


312  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

part,  bj  a  denomination  of  people  called  Mormons.  These  Mor- 
mons, lo  the  number  of  about  fifteen  hundred  men,  have  associated 
themselves  togetJier,  and  have  resisted,  and  do  resist  witli  force  of 
arms,  legal  process  against  persons  belonging  to  their  denomination. 
Your  petitioner  further  states,  that  on  the  2M\  day  of  August  last 
past,  Adam  Black  appeared  before  me,  and  made  oath,  that  A.  Rip- 
ley, G.  A.  Smith,  and  others,  had  been  guilty  of  a  high  oflence, 
known  to  the  law,  in  substance,  as  follows,  to  wit :  That  on  or  about 
the  fth  day  of  August,  18:3d,  in  Daviess  county,  there  came  an 
armed  force  to  his  (Black's)  house,  in  said  county,  among  whom, 
the  said  llipley,  Smith,  and  other  persons  named' in  said  alKdavit, 
were  a  part,  and  then  and  there,  with  deadly  weapons,  made  an 
assault  upon  him,  (the  said  Black,)  and  then  and  there  threatened 
him  (Black,  who  was  then  an  acting  Justice  of  the  Feace,  within 
and  for  Daviess  county  aforesaid)  with  instant  death,  if  he  did  not 
sign  a  certain  instrument  of  writing,  binding  himself,  as  a  Justice  of 
the  Peace  of  said  county  of  Daviess,  not  to  molest  the  people  called 
Mormons,  and  threatened  the  lives  of  himself  (the  said  Black)  and 
others,  and  said  they  intended  to  make  ever3-  citizen  of  said  county 
sign  such  obligation,  &c. 

"  Your  {K'titioner  further  states,  that  he  immediately  issued  a  writ, 
pursuant  to  law,  for  the  arrest  of  the  said  A.  Ripley,  G.  A.  Smith, 
and  others,  commanding  the  oflicer,  intrustt^d  with  the  execution  of 
said  writ,  after  the  arrest,  to  bring  the  bodies  of  the  persons  therein 
named  forthwith  before  your  petitioner,  to  answer  the  complaint, 
and  further  to  be  dealt  with  according  to  law.  There  being  no  con- 
stable within  the  township  of  which  I  am  justice,  he  having  been 
driven  from  the  county  by  and  through  fear  of  the  Mormons,  and 
your  petitioner  believing  that  said  writ  would  not  be  executed, 
unless  a  special  deputy  was  made  for  that  purpose,  your  petitioner, 
then  and  there,  appointed  Nathaniel  H.  Blakely  a  special  deputy, 
to  serve  said  writ,  and  said  appointment  was  endorsed  on  said  writ, 
aaid  signed  by  myself  othcially,  and  then  and  there  delivered  to  the 
said  Blakely.  Your  petitioner  further  states  that  the  said  Blakelj' 
took  the  said  writ,  and  summoned  a  guard,  consisting  of  ten  men, 
who  went  in  search  of  the  persons  named  in  said  writ,  for  the  pur 
pose  of  executing  said  writ;  but  the  said  constable  returned,  that  the 
persons  named  in  said  writ  were  not  found  in  said  county,  by  reason 
of  Inmself  and  guard  having  been  driven,  by  force,  from  the  town, 
in  said  count3-,  in  which  the  ofienders  were  supposed  there  to  be. 
The  said  alRdavit,  writ,  and  return,  are  herewith  respectfully  sub- 
mitted to  your  Excellency. 

"  Your  petitioner  further  believes  and  represents,  that  the  Mor- 
mons are  so  numerous,  and  so  well  armed,  within  the  limits  of  the 
counties  of  Caldwell  and  Daviess,  that  the  judicial  power  of  the 
counties  is  wholly  unable  to  execute  any  civil  or  criminal  process 
within  the  limits  of  either  of  said  counties,  against  a  Morwon  or 
.Mormons,  as  they,  each  and  every  one  of  them,  act  in  concert,  and 
outnumber  the  other  citizens.  They  also  declare  that  t/icij  arc  in- 
dcptndcnt,  and  your  petitioner  verily  believes  that  the  Mormons 
hold  in  utter  contempt  the  institutions  of  the  country  in  which 
they   live. 


EXTRACTS    TROM   A   MISSOURI    DOCU>IENT.  313 

"  Your  petitioner  further  represents,  some  time  about  the  8th  of 
September  last,  that  three  individuals  were  arrested  by  the  said 
Mormons,  in  Caldwell  county,  and  held  in  custody,  and  your  pe- 
titioner represents  that  he  believes  they  are  still  in  confinement, 
without  any  warrant  of  law.  Your  petitioner  further  represents  that 
he  verily  believes  that  no  civil  officer  of  the  State  could  cause  to  be 
executed  any  legal  process  within  either  of  said  counties  of  Caldwell 
or  Daviess. 

"  Your  petitioner,  therefore,  respectfully  prays  your  Excellency 
to  furnish  the  civil  officers,  within  and  for  the  counties  of  Daviess 
and  Caldwell,  a  sufficient  number  of  troops  to  enable  them  to  exe- 
cute the  laws  of  the  land,  and  bring  the  offenders,  aforesaid,  to 
justice.     To  this  end  your  petitioner  will  ever  pray,  &.c. 

"  William  Dryden, 
"  Justice  of  the  Peace,  Daviess  County. 

"  SepUmber  15,  1838." 


Statement  of  C.  Jackson  and  Others. 

"Camp  near  De  Witt,  October!,  1838. 

"  To  the  Citizens  of  Howard  County : 

"  Gentlemen, — 

"  This  county  is  the  theatre  of  a  civil  war,  and  will  soon 
be  one  of  desolation,  unless  the  citizens  of  the  adjoining  counties 
lend  immediate  assistance.  The  infatuated  Mormons  have  assem- 
bled in  large  numbers  in  De  Witt,  prepared  for  war,  and  are  contin- 
ually pouring  in  from  all  quarters  where  these  detestable  fanatics 
reside. 

"  The  war  is  commenced!  blood  has  been  shed — they  shed  it ;  they 
waylaid  and  fired  upon  a  body  of  the  citizens  of  Carroll  county,  and 
wounded  some.  They  are  the  aggressors  —  they  have  been  guilty 
of  high  treason  ;  they  have  violated  the  laws,  and  shed  the  blood  of 
our  citizens ;  and  we  think  this  one  of  the  cases  of  emergency  in 
which  the  people  ought  to  take  the  execution  of  justice  in  their  own 
hands.  Speedy  action  is  necessary;  the  progress  of  their  imposition, 
insult,  and  oppression,  ought  to  be  checked  in  the  beginning.  The 
people  must  act  together  —  they  must  act  energetically. 

"  It  is  now  12  o'clock  at  night  —  the  Mormons  are  lurking  around 
our  camp,  and  making  preparations  to  attack  us  before  day.  Our 
numbers  are  much  less  than  theirs,  and  we  will  have  to  act  on  the 
defensive,  until  we  procure  more  assistance.  About  two  hours  ago, 
the  Mormons  were  reinforced  by  sixty-two  mounted  men,  well 
armed,  from  Far  West ;  they  are  arriving  every  night ;  two  nights 
ago,  it  is  thought  one  hundred  came  to  De  Witt,  for  the  purpose 
of  making  war  upon  the  people  of  this  county. 

"  Under  such  circumstances,  you  cannot  fail  to  come  forward  im- 
mediately. Can  you  not  be  here  by  Sunday  or  Monday  at  furthest .' 
Come  by  fives  and  tens,  if  you  cannot  come  by  companies ;  bring  all 
you  can.  This  is  no  false  excitement  or  idle  rumor  —  it  is  the  cold 
reality,  too  real.     We  will  anticipate  you  immediately,  and  shall  ex- 

27 


314  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

pect  your  cooperation  and  assistance  in  expelling  the  fanatics,  who 
are  mostly  aliens  by  birtli,  and  aliens  in  principle  from  the  county. 
We  must  be  enemies  to  the  common  enemies  of  our  laws,  religion, 
and  country. 

"  Your  friends  and  fellow-citizens, 

"  CoNGRAVE  Jackson,  John  L.  Tomlin, 

"  Larkin  K.  Woods,  Sidney  S.  Woods, 

"  Thomas  Jackson,  Geo.  Crigler, 

"  RoLLA  M.  Daviess,  W.m.  L.  Banks, 

"  James   Jackson,  Jr.,  Whitfield  Dicken. 

"  Johnson  Jackson, 
"P.  S.     Our  guard  was  just  now  fired  upon  by  the  Mormons. 
They  have  become  imboldened  by  their,  recent  reunforcements,  and 
we  will  have  to  act  on  the  defensive,  until  assistance  arrives." 


"State  of  Missouri 
County  of  Daviess, 


Jlffidavit  of  Philip  Coxnngtx)n. 

!  SB. 


"  I,  Philip  Covmgton,  an  acting  Justice  of  the  Peace  within  and 
for  said  countj^,  do  certify,  that  on  the  18th  inst.,  one  hundred  or 
more  Mormons  marched  to  Gallatin,  and  drove  the  citizens  from  said 
place,  then  robbed  the  store  and  post-office,  and  burned  said  store 
and  office.  On  the  20tli  of  this  inst.,  twenty-five  armed  Mormons 
came  to  my  house,  and  gave  me  orders  to  leave  the  county  against 
next  morning,  or  they  would  be  upon  me  and  my  famil}".  Myself, 
with  many  other  citizens,  have  left  the  county.  They  are  now  rob 
bing  and  burning  the  dwellings  of  the  defenceless  citizens. 

'  Given  under  my  hand,  this  22d  day  of  September,  1838. 

"  Philip  Covington,  J.  P." 


Colonel  Peniston  to  the  Governor. 

"Datiess  Cou.ntv,  Missouri,  Octol/er  21,  1B38. 
To  His  Excellency  the  Governor  of  Missouri : 

«  Sir,— 

"  I  deem  it  my  duty,  made  so  not  only  from  the  law  as  an 
officer,  but  also  as  an  individual,  to  report  and  make  known  to  your 
Excellency  the  unheard-of  and  unprecedented  conduct  and  high- 
handed proceedings  of  the  Mormons  of  this  and  Caldwell  counties, 
towards  the  other  citizens  of  this  county,  being  myself  one  of  the 
sufferers. 

"  On  Mondav,  the  loth  inst.,  we  learned  that  the  Mormons  were 
collecting  in  Far  West,  for  the  purpose  of  driving  what  they  term 
the  mob  from  this  county,  by  whicli  we  understand  the  citizens  that 
were  not  Mormons;  and  accordingly  they  have  come,  and  our 
worst  apprehensions  have  been  already  fulfilled.  They  have  plun- 
dered or  robbed  and  burned  every  house  in  Gallatin,  our  county 
seat,  among  the  rest  our  post-office ;  have  driven  almost  every  indi- 


EXTRACTS    FROM    A   MISSOURI    DOCUMENT.  315 

vidual  from  the  county,  who  are  now  flying  before  them  with  their 
families,  many  of  wliom  have  been  forced  out  witkoitt  necessary 
clothing;  their    wives  and  little    children   wading,  in  many 

INSTANCES,    THROUGH    THE    SNOW    WITHOUT    A    SHOE'.!!        VVhcn    the 

miserable  families  are  thus  forced  out,  their  houses  are  laundered  and 
burned;  they  are  making  this  universal  throughout  the  county. 
They  have  burned  for  me  two  houses  ;  and,  sir,  think  this  not  ex- 
aggeration,/or  all  is  not  told  ;  and  for  the  trutli  of  all  and  every  state- 
ment here  made,  I  pledge  the  honor  of  an  othcer  and  gentleman. 

"  These  facts  are  made  known  to  you,  sir,  hoping  that  3'our 
authority  will  be  used  to  stop  the  course  of  this  banditti  of  Canadian 
refugees,  and  restore  us  to  our  lost  homes.  I  neglected  to  state  that, 
among  the  rest,  our  County  Treasurer's  office  has  been  also  burned 
I  will  only  ask,  in  conclusion,  can  such  proceedings  be  submitted  to 
in  a  government  of  laws.'  I  think  not,  and  must  answer  my  inter- 
roo-atory  —  No,  notwithstanding  the  political  juggling  of  such  men  as 

and  some  others,  whose  reports  and  circulations, 

setting  the  conduct  and  character  of  the  Mormons  favorably  before 
the  community,  are  believed  by  the  people  of  this  county  to  be 
prompted  by  the  hope  of  interest  or  emolument. 

"  I  am  yours,  sir, 

"  With  due  regard, 

"  Wm.  p.  Peniston, 
Col.  mth  Reg.-2d  Brig.  M  Die.  Mo.  Mi. 

"  P.  S.  Since  writing  the  above,  I  have  procured  the  testimony, 
on  oath,  of  some  si.x:  or  eight  persons,  corroborating  my  statement, 
which  accompanies  this.  ti  y^    p_  p  -> 


Affidavit  of  Samuel  Venable. 

"  This  is  to  certify  that  I  was  called  upon  last  night  to  wait  upon 
a  lady  who  was  about  to  increase  her  family ;  she  had  travelled,  as 
she  told  me,  about  eight  miles  in  labor,  to  get  from  the  Mormons, 
who  were  engaged  in  driving  off  the  people  from  their  homes,  giving 
them  only  about  three  days'  notice,  plundering  and  rolling  their 
houses.  The  lady  alluded  to  above,  Mrs.  Smith  by  name,  stopped 
on  the  camp  ground  on  the  east  of  Daviess  county,  where  she  in- 
creased her  family.  There  was  another  lady  who  stopped  on  the 
camp  ground,  loiwse  hahij  was  but  four  days  old. 

"  I  was  also  at  Mr.  White's  this  morning,  who  lives  in  Livingston 
county,  who  was  on  yesterday  very  much  injured  in  property  by 
tlie  Mormons.  1  saw  a  good  deal  of  the  mischief  by  them  done,  and 
was  told  by  Mrs.  White  that,  in  addition  to  the  above,  she  received 
from  them  invectives  ;  that  they  had  plundered  the  house,  taken 
cloths,  and  other  articles;  destroyed  all  their  bee-stands ;  taken  off. 
drawing  chains,  log  chains,  &c.  The  quantity  of  oats,  fodder,  and 
corn  taken  from  White's  must  have  been  considerable,  as  they  fed 
about  two  hundred  horses,  leaving  on  the  ground  where  they  fed 
a  (Treat  deal  of  oats,  &c.  Given  under  my  hand,  this  ^2d  October, 
1(|38_  Samuel  Venable. 


316  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

"I  certify  that  the  above  is  a  true  copy  of  the  instrument  given, 
sworn  to,  and  subscribed  before  me  on  2yd  of  this  instant,  this  22d 
October,  183d.  Levi  F.  Gaben,  J.  P." 


Citizens  of  Bay  County  to  the  Governor. 

"Richmond,  Missouri,  October  S3, 183S. 

"  To  the  Governor  of  the  State  of  Missouri : 

"Sir,— 

"  The  alarming  state  of  Daviess  county,  and  the  panic 
produced  by  the  late  movements  of  the  Mormons  in  that  county, 
have  produced  a  degree  of  excitement  and  alarm  here,  that  has 
not  been  heretofore  witnessed.  The  latest  accounts  from  Daviess 
county  that  have  reached  us,  say  that  all  the  inhabitants  of  Daviess 
county  have  k  ft,  and  sought  refuge  in  Livingston  or  this  county. 
Tlie  storehouse  of  Jacob  Stollings,  in  Gallatin,  was  robbed  and 
burned  by  the  Mormons ;  the  post-office  kept  there  was  also  de- 
stroyed, and  we  believe  that  the  houses  of  five  or  six  of  the  inhabitants 
of  Daviess  have  been  destroyed  by  fire,  the  property  taken  away, 
and  the  women  and  children  obliged  to  flee.  The  arms  of  all  the 
citizens  in  Daviess,  they  could  find,  have  been  taken  by  them 
forcibly  ;  they  have  carried  away  the  cannon  from  Livingston  coun- 
ty, and  have  it  now  in  their  possession. 

"  The  Mormons  have  robbed  George  Worthington,  post-master, 
at  Gallatin,  of  his  notes  and  property,  to  the  amount  of  nearly  $2000. 
In  short,  the  news  from  them  reaches  us  hourly,  that  they  are  de- 
stroying the  property  of  the  citizens  they  cannot  carry  away,  and 
all  that  theycan  carry  away,  they  take.  Blood  and  plunder  appear 
to  be  their  object,  and  those  v\'ho  do  not  join  with  them  in  their 
incendiary  conduct,  are  banished  from  Caldwell,  and  all  those  of 
other  counties  who  are  opposed  to  them,  are  threatened.  It  is  the 
desire  of  the  citizens  that  his  Excellency  would  visit  this  section  of 
country,  and  call  out  a  sufficient  number  of  troops  to  put  a  stop  to 
the  further  ravages  of  these  fanatics.  If  some  such  measures  are 
not  taken  shortly,  the  whole  country  will  be  overrun.  We  now 
firmly  believe  thcij  are  aggressors,  and  say  they  will  indemnify  them- 
selves for  losses  in  Jackson  and  Carroll.  We  are  not  alarmists,  and 
have  had  no  fears,  until  lately,  that  these  fanatics  would  have  dared  to 
behave  as  they  have  lately.  There  seems  to  be  but  one  opinion  here 
on  the  subject,  and  that  is,  unless  a  military  force  is  brought  to  act 
against  them,  and  that  shortly,  they  will  destroy  as  far  as  they  are 
able.     We  think  it  our  duty  to  advise  you  of  these  things. 

"  Very  respectfully, 
"  R.  S.  Mitchell,  M.  P.  Long, 

"John  N.  Hughes,  James  S.  Bell, 

"Thos.  McKinney,  B.  J.  Brown,  Sheriff, 

"Jesse  Comer,  George  Woodward, 

"T.  L.  D.  W.  Shaw,  Lewis  S.  Jacobs, 

"  G.  Lenhart,  Berry  Huges, 

"John  C.  Richardson,      Wm.  Hcdcjns,  P.M. 


EXTRACTS    FBOM    A    MISSOURI    DOCUMENT.  317 

"  We  are  deficient  in  arms ;  if  there  are  any  to  spare,  we  wish  them 
brought  up  here.  Wm.  Hudgins." 


T.  C  Burch  to  the   Governor. 

"  Richmond,  Missouri,  October  23,  1838. 
"  To  His  Excellency  the  Governor  of  Missouri : 

"  The  Mormon  difficulties  are  arising,  and  have  arisen 
here  to  an  alarming  height.  It  is  said  (and  I  believe  truly)  that 
they  have  recently  robbed  and  burned  the  storehouse  of  Mr.  J.  Stol- 
lings,  in  Gallatin,  Daviess  county,  and  that  they  have  burned  sev- 
eral dwelling-houses  of  the  citizens  of  Daviess,  taken  their  arms  from 
them,  and  have  taken  some  provisions. 

"Mormon  dissenters  are  daily  flying  to  this  county  for  refuge 
from  the  ferocity  of  the  Prophet  Joe  Smith,  who,  they  say,  threat- 
ens the  lives  of  all  Mormons  who  refuse  to  take  up  arms  at  his 
bidding,  or  to  do  his  commands.  Those  dissenters  (and  they  are 
numerous)  all  confirm  the  reports  concerning  the  Dunite  Band,  of 
which  you  have  doubtless  heard  much,  and  say  that  Joe  infuses 
into  the  minds  of  his  followers  a  spirit  of  insubordination  to  the  laics 
of  the  land,  telling  them  that  the  kingdom  of  the  Lord  is  come, 
which  is  superior  to  the  institutions  of  the  earth,  and  encourages 
them  to  fight,  and  promises  them  the  spoils  of  the  battles. 

"  A  respectable  gentleman  of  my  acquaintance,  from  Livingston, 
is  here  now,  who  informs  me  that  the  Mormons  are  robbing  the  citi- 
zens of  Livingston,  on  the  borders  of  Caldwell,  of  their  corn  and  what- 
ever el.se  they  want;  that  they  have  taken  a  cannon  from  Livingston 
county,  and  are  prowling  about  the  country,  a  regularly-formed 
banditti.  That  the  Prophet  Joe  Smith  has  persuaded  his  Church, 
that  they  are  not,  and  ought  not  to  be,  amenable  to  the  laws  of  the 
land,  and  is  still  doing  it,  I  have  no  doubt.  The  Danite  Band,  as  I 
am  informed  by  numbers  of  the  most  respectable  of  the  Mormons, 
(who  are  now  dissenters,)  binds  them  to  support  the  High  Council 
of  the  Mormon  Church  and  one  another  in  all  things,  ichether  right 
or  icrong,  and  that  even  by  false  sioearing.  I  have  taken  much 
pains  to^be  informed  correctly  about  this  Danite  Band,  and  I  am 
well  satisfied  that  my  information,  as  above  stated,  is  correct.  1  have 
no  doubt  but  tliat  Joe  Smith  is  as  lawless  and  consummate  a  scoun- 
drel, as  ever  was  the  Veiled  Prophet  of  Khorassan.  I  believe  the 
criminal  law  in  Caldwell  county  cannot  be  enforced  upon  a  Mormon. 
Grand  juries  there  will  not  indict.  Joe  declares,  in  his  public 
addresses,  that  he  can  revolutionize  the  United  States,  and  that  if 
provoked  he  will  do  it.  This  declaration  has  been  heard  by  Colonel 
Williams  of  this  place,  and  other  gentlemen  of  equal  veracity.  I 
have  hoped  that  the  civil  authority  would  prove  sufficient  for  the 
exigency  of  the  case,  but  I  am  now  convinced  that  it  is  not,  so  long 
as  indictments  have  to  be  found  by  a  jury  of  the  county  in  which 
the  offence  may  be  committed. 

"  I  do  not  pretend  to  have  wisdom  enough  to  make  a  suggestion 
aa  to   what  your  E.xcellency  should   do.     The  evil   is  alarming, 
27* 


318  HISTORY    OF  THE    SAINTS. 

beyond  all  doubt.     1   suggest  the  foregoing   facts  for  your  con 
sideration. 

"  I  am,  very  respectfully, 

"  Your  obedient  servant, 

"  Thos.  C.  Burch. 

"  P.  S.     Judge  King  will  give  you  some  information  by  the  next 
mail.  •  T.  C.  B." 


Hon.  A.  A.  King  to  the  Governor. 

"  Richmond,  October  ^A,  1838. 
"Dear  Sir,— 

"  As  Mr.  Williams  will  be  to  see  you  in  reference 
to  our  Mormon  difficulties,  and  will  be  able  to  say  all  to  you,  per- 
haps, that  can  be  said,  1  deem  it  a  duty,  notwithstanding,  to  give  you 
such  information  as  I  have  sought  and  obtained,  and  it  is  such  that 
I  assure  you  may  be  relied  on. 

"  Our  relations  with  the  Mormons  are  such  that  I  am  perfectly 
satisfied  the  arm  of  the  civil  authority  is  too  weak  to  give  peace  to 
the  country.  Until  lately,  I  thought  the  Mormons  were  disposed  to 
act  only  on  the  defensive  ;  but  their  recent  conduct  shows  that  they 
ARE  THE  AGGhESsoRS,  and  that  they  intend  to  take  the  law  into 
their  own  hands.  Of  their  recent  outrages  in  Daviess  county,  you 
have  doubtlessly  heard  much  already  ;  of  their  course  of  conduct  in 
Daviess,  I  will  give  you  the  general  facts,  for  to  give  particulars 
would  far  transcend  the  limits  of  a  letter. 

"  On  Sunday,  before  they  marched  to  Daviess,  Joe  Smith  made 
known  his  views  to  the  people,  and  declared  the  time  had  come 
when  they  would  avenge  their  own  wrongs,  and  that  all  who  was 
not  for  them,  and  take  up  arms  with  them,  should  be  considered 
against  them ;  that  their  property  should  be  confiscated,  and  their 
lives  also  be  forfeited.  With  this  declaration,  and  much  else  said 
by  Smith,  calculated  to  excite  the  people  present,  the  next  day  was 
set  to  meet  and  see  who  was  for  them  and  who  against  them,  and 
under  such  severe  penalties  there  was  none,  that  I  learn,  who  did  not 
turn  out,  and  about  three  or  four  hundred  men,  with  Smith  at  their 
head,  marched  to  Daviess  ;  this  was  on  Tuesday ;  the  next  day 
was  the  snow-storm,  and  upon  Thursday  they  commenced  their 
ravages  upon  the  citizens,  driving  them  from  their  houses  and  taking 
their  property.  Between  eighty  and  one  hundred  men  went  to 
Gallatin,  pillaged  houses,  and  the  store  of  Mr.  Stollings,  and  the  post- 
office,  and  then  burned  the  houses ;  they  carried  off  the  spoils  on  horse- 
back and  in  wagons,  and  now  have  them,  I  understand,  in  a  storehouse 
near  their  camp.  Houses  have  been  robbed  of  their  contents,  beds, 
clothing,  furniture,  «&-c.,  and  all  deposited,  and  they  term  it  a  con- 
secration to  the  Lord.  At  this  time  there  is  not  a  citizen  in  Daviess 
except  Mormons.  Many  have  been  driven  without  warning ; 
others  have  been  allowed  a  few  hours  to  start.  The  stock  of  the 
citizens  have  been  seized  upon,  killed  and  salted  up  by  hundreds. 
From  fifty  to  one  hundred  wagons  are  now  emploj'ed  in  hauling  in 
t/te  corn  from  the  surrounding  country.     They  look  for  a  force 


EXTRACTS    FROM    A    MISSOURI    DOCUMENT.        319 

against  them,  and  are  consequently  preparing  for  a  siege,  building 
bfock-houses,  &c.  They  have  lately  organized  themselves  into  a  band, 
of  what  they  call  Danltcs,  and  sworn  to  support  their  leading  men 
in  all  they  say  and  do,  right  or  icroiig,  and  further  to  put  to  instant 
death  those  who  will  betray  them.  Tliere  is  another  band,  of  twelve, 
called  the  Destructives,  whose  duty  it  is  to  watch  the  movements 
of  men,  and  of  committees,  and  to  avenge  themselves  for  supposed 
wrongful  movements  against  them,  by  privately  burning  houses, 
property,  and  even  laying  in  ashes  towns,  &c. 

'•  I  find  I  am  running  out  my  letter  too  much  in  detail ;  I  do  not 
deem  it  necessary  to  give  you  a  minute  detail  of  all  the  facts  of 
which  I  am  possessed,  but  I  give  you  the  above  in  order  that  you 
may  form  some  idea  of  the  disposition  of  these  people.  The  Mor- 
mons expect  to  settle  the  affair  at  the  point  of  the  sword,  and  I  am 
well  warranted  in  saying  to  you  that  the  people  in  this  quarter  of  the 
State  look  to  you  for  that  protection  which  they  believe  you  will  atford 
when  you  have  learned  the  facts.  I  do  not  pretend  to  advise  your 
course,  nor  make  any  suggestions  other  than  what  I  have  stated, — 
that  it  is  utterly  useless  tor  the  civil  authorities  to  pretend  to  inter- 
pose. The  country  is  in  great  commotion,  and  I  can  assure  you  that, 
either  with  or  without  authority,  something  will  shortly  have  to  be 
done. 

"  I  hope  you  will  let  me  hear  from  you  by  the  return  of  Mr.  Wil- 
liams, and  if  you  should  come  up  the  country  shortly,  it  will  give 
me  pleasure  to  take  the  trouble  to  see  you. 

"  I  am,  very  respectfully, 

"  Austin  A.  King." 


Affidavit  of  Thomas  B.  March, 

"  At  the  request  of  a  committee  of  the  citizens  of  Ray  county,  1 
make  the  following  statement  in  relation  to  the  recent  movements, 
plans,  and  intentions,  of  the  Mormons  in  the  counties  of  Caldwell 
and  Daviess  :  — 

"  Shortly  after  the  settlement  of  the  difficulties  at  De  Witt,  in  Car- 
roll county,  a  call  was  made  by  the  Mormons  at  Far  West,  in  Cald- 
well count/,  for  volunteers  co  go  to  Daviess  county  to  disperse  the 
mob,  as  they  said.  On  the  day  before  this,  Joseph  Smith,  tlie  Proph- 
et, had  preached,  in  which  lie  said,  that  all  the  Mormons  who  refused 
to  take  up  arms,  if  necessary,  in  difficulties  with  the  citizens,  should 
be  shot,  orothericise  put  to  death;  and  as  I  was  there  with  my  family, 
I  thought  it  most  prudent  to  go,  and  did  go,  with  my  wagon,  as  the 
driver.  We  marched  to  Adam-on-diahmon,  and  found  no  troops  or  mob 
in  Daviess  county.  Scouting  parties  frequently  went  out,  and  brought 
in  intelligence  that  they  had  seen  from  three  to  five  hundred  men. 
We  got°to  'Diahmon  on  Tuesday  evening,  and  on  the  next  day  a 
company  of  about  eighty  of  the  Mormons,  commanded  by  a  man 
fictitiously  named  Captain  Fearnought,  marched  to  Gallatin.  They 
returned,  and  said  they  had  run  off  from  Gallatin  twenty  or  thirty 
men,  and  had  taken  Gallatin,  —  had  token  one  prisoner,  and  another 
had  joined  the  company.  I  afterwards  learned  from  the  Mormons 
that  they  had  burnt  Gallatin,  and  tliat  it  was  done  by  tlie  aforesaid 


320  HISTORY  OF    THE    SAINTS. 

company  that  marched  there.  The  Mormons  informed  me  that  they 
had  liauled  away  all  the  goods  from  the  store  in  Gallatin,  and  depos- 
ited them  -at  tJie  Bishop's  storehouses  at  'Diahmon.  On  the  same 
day,  Lynaan  Wight  marched  about  eighty  horsemen  for  Millport. 
He  returned  before  night,  and  called  for  Joseph  Smith  and  Hyrum 
Smith,  to  report  to  them,  (said  Hyrum  being  counsellor  of  said  Joseph 
the  Prophet,;  and  said  Wight  reported  that  ho  had  been  in  sight  of 
Millport  — saw  no  one  to  fight  — but  that  the  people  gcneraUy  had 
gone  and  left  their  houses  and  property.  The  Prophet,  on  hear- 
ing the  property  was  left,  commenced  a  reply,  and  said,  '  We  had 
better  see  to  it,'  when  Wight  stopped  him  by  saying,  '  Never  mind, 
we  will  have  a  private  council ;' and  Smith  replied,  '  Very  well.' 
The  private  council  1  did  not  hear.  The  men  were  determined  to 
go  to  their  camps.  The  same  evening,  a  number  of  footuicn  came 
up  from  the  direction  of  Millport,  laden  with  property,  which  I  was 
informed  consisted  of  beds,  clocks,  and  other  household  furniture. 
The  same  night,  1  think,  about  three  wagons  were  despatched  for 
about  forty  bcc-gums,  and  the  next  day  1  saw  several  gums,  when 
they  were  splitting  them  up,  and  taking  the  honey  and  burning  the 
gums,  in  which  business  of  taking  out  the  honey,  but  few  were 
engaged,  for  fear,  as  they  said,  they  would  be  called  on  as  witnesses 
against  them.  When  Wight  returned  from  Millport,  and  informed 
Smith  that  the  people  were  gone  and  the  property  left,  Smith  asked 
liim  if  tiiey  had  left  any  of  tiie  negroes  for  them,  and  Wight  replied, 
'  No ; '  upon  which  some  one  laughed,  and  said  to  Smith,  '  You  have 
lost  your  negro  thc7i.'  During  the  same  time,  a  company,  called  the 
Fur  CoMPAivy,  were  sent  out  to  bring  in  fat  hogs  and  cattle,  calling 
the  hogs  BEARS,  and  the  cattle  buffaloes,  [and  the  houey  sweet  oil  — 
BEAR  MEAT,  BUFFALO,  and  SWEET  OIL  —  pretty  good  living  !]  They 
brought  in  at  one  time  seven  cattle,  and  at  another  time,  four  or  five, 
belonging  to  the  people  of  Daviess.  Hogs  were  brought  in  dead,  but  I 
know  not  how  many ;  I  saw  only  two.  Tliey  have  among  tlicm  a  com- 
pany consisting  of  all  that  are  considered'  true  Moriuoiio,  called  the 
Danites,  who  have  taken  an  oath  to  support  the  heads  of  the  Church 
in  all  things,  that  they  say  or  do,  whether  right  or  wrong.  Many, 
however,  of  this  band  are  nmch  dissatisfied  with  this  oath,  as  being 
against  moral  and  religious  principles.  On  Saturday  last,  I  am  in- 
formed by  the  Mormons  that  they  had  a  meeting  at  Far  West,  at 
which  they  appointed  a  company  of  twelve,  by  the  name  of  the 
Destruction  Company,  for  the  purpose  of  burning  and  destroying  ; 
and  that  if  the  people  of  Buncombe  came  to  do  mischief  upon  the 
people  of  Caldwell,  and  committed  depredations  upon  the  Mormons, 
they  were  to  burn  Buncombe  ;  and  if  the  people  of  Clay  and  Ray 
made  any  movements  against  them,  this  destroying  company  were 
to  burn  Liberty  and  Richmond.  Tiiis  burning  was  to  be  done 
secretly,  by  going  as  incendiaries.  At  the  same  meeting,  I  was 
informed,  they  passed  a  decree  that  no  Mormon  dissenter  should 
leave  Caldwell  county  alive  ;  and  that  such  as  attempted  to  do  it, 
should  be  shrjt  down,  and  sent  to  tell  their  tale  in  eternity.  In  a  con- 
versation between  Dr.  Avard  and  other  Mormons,  said  Avard  pro- 
posed to  start  a  pestilence  among  the  Gentiles,  as  he  called  them,  by 
poisoning  their  corn,  fruit,  &C.,  and  saying  it  was  the  work  of  the 


EXTRACTS    FROM    A   MISSOURI    DOCUMENT.        321  ; 

Lord ;  and  said  Avard  advocated  lying  for  the  support  of  their  reli- 
gion, and  SAID  IT  WAS  no  harm  to  lie  for  the  Lord  !  !  The  plan 
of  said  Sniitli,  the  Prophet,  is  to  take  this  State ;  and  lie  professes  to 
his  people  to  intend  taking  the  United  States,  and  ultimately  the 
whole  world.  This  is  the  belief  of  the  Church,  and  my  own  opinion 
of  the  Prophet's  plans  and  intentions.  It  is  my  opinion  that  neither 
said  Joseph  Smith,  the  Prophet,  nor  any  one  of  the  principal  men, 
who  is  firm  in  the  faith,  could  be  indicted  for  any  otFence  in  the 
county  of  Caldwell.  The  Prophet  inculcates  the  notion,  and  it  is 
believed  by  every  true  Mormon,  that  Smith's  prophecies  are  superior 
to  the  law  of  the  land.  I  have  heard  the  Prophet  say  that  he  should 
yet  tread  down  his  enemies,  and  walk  over  their  dead  bodies ;  that  if 
he  was  not  let  alone,  he  would  be  a  second  Mahomet  to  this  genera- 
tion, and  that  he  would  make  it  one  gore  of  blood  from  the  Rocky 
Mountains  to  the  Mlantic  Ocean  ;  that  like  Mahomet,  whose  motto, 
in  treating  for  peace,  was  '  the  Alcoran  or  the  Sword,'  so  should  it  be 
eventually  with  us,  '  Joseph  Smith  or  the  Sword.'  These  last 
statements  were  made  during  the  last  summer.  The  number  of 
armed  men  at  Adam-on-diahmon  was  between  three  and  four  hun- 
dred. -  Tho.mas  B.  March. 

"  Sworn  to  and  subscribed  before  me,  the  day  herein  written. 

"  Henry  Jacobs,  J.  P.,  Ray  County,  Missouri. 

"  Richmond,  Missouri,  October  24,  1838." 


Affidavit  of  Orson  Hyde. 

"  The  most  of  the  statements  in  the  foregoing  disclosure  of 
Thomas  B.  March  /  know  to  be  true;  the  remainder  I  believe  to  be 
true.  Orson  Hyde. 

"Richmond,  October  24,  1838. 

*'  Sworn  to  and  subscribed  before  me,  on  the  day  above  written. 

"  Henry  Jacobs,  J.  P." 


Certificate  of  Thomas  C.  Burch  and  Others. 
"  The  undersigned  committee,  on  the  part  of  the  citizens  of 
Ray  county,  have  no  doubt  but  Thomas  B.  March  and  Orson  Hyde, 
whose  names  are  signed  to  the  foregoing  certificates,  have  been 
members  of  the  Mormon  Church  in  full  fellowship  until  very  re- 
cently, when  they  voluntarily  abandoned  the  Mormon  Church  and 
faith,  and  that  said  March  was,  at  the  time  of  his  dissenting,  the 
president  of  the  twelve  Apostles,  and  president  of  the  Church  at  Far 
West,  and  that  said  Hyde  was  at  that  time  one  of  the  twelve  Apos- 
tles, and  that  they  left  the  Church,  and  abandoned  the  faith  of  the 
Mormons,  from  a  conviction  of  their  immorality  and  impiety. 

"  Thos.  C.  Burch,  J.  R.  Hendley, 

"  William  Hudgins,  C.  R.  Morehead, 

"  Henry  Jacobs,  O.  H.  Searcy. 

"  George  Woodward, 
"BicBMOMD,  Oeteb$r2i,  1S38." 


322  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

General  Clark  to  the  Governor. 

*  Head-Quarters  or  the  Mtlitia  employed  against  the  Mormons,  ) 
Richmond,  JVoveniber  10,  1838.  ) 

•'  To  His  Excellency  L.  W.  Boggs: 
"Sir,— 

"  I  find,  by  inquiry,  that  with  all  the  enormities  we 
have  heard  charged  against  these  people,  [the  Mormons,]  many  of 
which  charges  we  looked  upon  as  the  offspring  of  prejudice  on"  the 
part  of  our  citizens,  THE  half  has  not  yet  been  told!!  There 
is  no  crime,  from  treason  doicn  to  the  most  petty  larceny,  but 
these  people,  or  a  majority  of  them,  hare  been  guilty  of,  all,  too,  under 
the  counsel  of  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  the  Prophet!  They  have  committed 
TREASON,  MURDER,  ARSON,  BURGLARY,  ROBBERY, 
LARCENY,  AND  PERJURY!!!  They  have  societies  formed 
under  the  most  binding  covenants  in  form,  and  the  most  hmrid  oaths, 
to  circumvent  the  laws,  and  put  them  at  defiance,  and  to  plunder,  and 
burn,  and  murder,  and  divide  the  spoils  for  the  use  of  the  Churcli. 
This  is  what  they  call  the  Danite  Society.  *  *  *  « 

"  Under  this  horrid  system  many  of  the  citizens  of  Daviess 
county,  who  went  to  that  frontier  poor,  and-who,  by  their  industry 
and  economy,  had  acquired  a  good  living,  have  been  robbed  of  every 
article  of  property  they  have,  their  homes  burnt  before  their  eyes,  and 
they  and  their  icives  and  children  driven  out  of  the  county,  without 
any  kind  of  shelter!  In  one  instance  I  have  been  informed  that  a 
family  was  ordered  off,  and  their  houses  burnt  in  their  sight,  and  a 
woman  driven  out  ichilc  it  teas  snotcing,  with  a  child  only  four  days 
old ;  in  another  case,  I  was  informed  the  family  was  driven  away, 
and  the  woman  icas  compelled  to  ask  protection  in  a  few  miles,  7chere 
she  teas  delivered  of  a  child  a  short  time  after  she  teas  thus  treated! 
These,  sir,  are  some  of  the  offences  of  these  people.  *  «  » 
"  I  am,  sir, 

"  Your  obedient  servant, 

"  John  B.  Clark, 
"  Major-  General  Commanding." 


The  Governor  to  General  Clark, 

"Executive  DEPARTiMENT,  City  of  Jefferson,  ^''ovetnher  1,  1838. 

"Major-General  John  B.  Clark: 
"Sir,— 

"  Your  communication,  by  express,  of  October  30,  en- 
closing one  from  Major-General  Atchison  and  Lucas,  of  the  2Sth 
October,  has  been  received.  It  is  impossible  for  me  to  leave  here; 
the  near  approach  of  the  meeting  of  the  legislature  renders  it  neces- 
sary that  every  moment  of  my  time  be  employed  in  preparation  to 
meet  thcni.  It  was  considered  by  me  that  full  and  ample  powers 
were  vested  in  you  to  carry  into  effect  my  former  orders.  The  case 
is  now-a  very  plain  one;  the  Mormons  must  be  subdued,  and  peack 


EXTRACTS    FROM   A   MISSOURI    DOCUMENT.  323 

restored  to  the  community.  You  will,  therefore,  proceed  without 
delay  to  execute  the  former  orders.  Full  confidence  is  reposed  in 
your  ability  to  do  so;  your  force  will  be  amply  sufficient  to  accom- 
plish the  object.  Should  you  need  the  aid  of  artillery,  I  would  sug- 
gest that  an  application  be  made  to  the  commandiiifr  officer  of  Fort 
Leavenworth,  for  such  as  you  may  need.  You  are  authorized  to 
request  the  loan  of  it  in  the  name  of  the  State  of  Missouri.  My 
presence  then  could  effect  nothing-.  I  therefore  again  repeat  that 
you  are  authorized,  and  full  power  is  given  you,  to  take  whatever 
steps  you  deem  necessary,  and  such  as  the  circumstances  of  the  case 
may  seem  to  demand,  to  subdue  the  insurgents,  and  give  peace  and 
quiet  to  the  country.  The  ringleaders  of  this  rebellion  should  be 
made  an  example  of;  and,  if  it  should  become  NECESS-iRV  for 
THE  PUBLIC  PEACE,  the  Mormons  should  be  exterminated  or  ex- 
pelled from  the  State.  In  order  that  no  difficulty  may  arise  in  rela- 
tion to  the  command,  I  must  inform  you  that  neither  General 
Atchison  nor  Lucas  have  been  called  into  service  under  the  late 
order,  (except  General  Lucas  was  directed  to  raise  four  hundred 
men  in  his  division,  and  to  place  them  under  the  command  "of  a 
Brigadier-General.)  The  privilege  ^vas  ofiered  him  of  commanding 
the  troops  from  his  own  division,  though  subject  to  your  orders.  All 
the  troops  now  under  arms,  and  those  that  may  arrive  at  the  seat  of 
war,  are  placed  under  your  command. 

"  You  will  report  to  me  by  express,  and  keep  me  regularly  in- 
formed of  any  thing  of  importance  which  may  occur.  The  near 
approach  of  winter  requires  that  your  operations  should  be  hastened. 
After  having  restored  quiet,  you  will  cause  the  people  of  Daviess 
county,  who  have  been  driven  from  tiieir  homes,  to  be  reinstated. 
"  1  am,  respectfully, 

"  Your  obedient  servant, 

"  L.  VV.  BoGGs, 
"  Commander-in- Cliief." 


Cei-tificcUe  of  Mormons  as  to  the  Conduct  of  General  Clark  and 

his  Troops. 

"Richmond,  JVocemJcr  23,  1833. 
"  Understanding  that  Major-General  Clark  is  about  to  return  with 
the  whole  of  his  command  from  the  scene  of  difficulty,  we  avail 
ourselves  of  this  occasion  to  state  that  we  were  present  when  the 
Mormons  surrendered  to  Major-General  Lucas  at  Far  West,  and 
remained  there  until  Major-General  Clark  arrived ;  and  we  are 
happy  to  have  an  opportunity,  as  well  as  the  satisfaction,  of  stating 
that  the  course  of  him  and  his  troops,  while  at  Far  West,  was  of  the 
most  respectful,  kind,  and  obliging  character  towards  the  said  Mor- 
mons ;  and  that  the  destitute  among  that  people  are  much  indebted 
to  him  for  sustenance  during  his  stay.  The  modification  of  the 
terms  upon  which  the  Mormons  surrendered,  by  permitting  them  to 
remain  until  they  could  safely  go  in  the  spring,  was  also  an  act  that 
gave  general  satisfaction  to  the  Mormons.     We  have  no  hesitation 


324  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

in  saying  that  the  course  taken  by  General  Clark  with  the  Mormons 
was  necessary  for  the  public  peace  ;  and  that  the  Mormons  are  gen- 
erally satisfied  with  his  course,  and  feel  in  duty  bound  to  say  that 
the  conduct  of  the  General,  his  staff  officers,  and  troops,  was  highly 
honorable  as  soldiers  and  citizens,  so  far  as  our  knowledire  extends; 
and  we  have  heard  of  nothing  derogatory  to  the  dio-nity  of  the  State 
in  the  treatment  of  the  prisoners. 

"  Respectfully,  &c  , 

"  W.  W.  Phelps, 
"  Geo.  Walter, 
"  John  Cleminson, 
"  G.  M.  Hi.s-kle, 
"  John  Corrill." 


EVIDENCE 

GIVEN  BEFORE   THE   HON.  AUSTIN  A.  KING, 

judge  of  thk  fifth  judicial  circuit  in  the  state  of  MISSOUKr, 

m^t  the  Cowi-House  in  Richmond,  in  a  Criminal  Court  of 
Inquiry,  begun  JVovemher  12,  Jl.  D.  1838,  on  the  Trial  oj 
Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  and  Others,  for  High  Treason,  and  other 
Crimes  against  the  State. 

"State  of  Missouri  ts.  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  Hyrum  Smith, 
Lyman  Wight,  Ebenezer  Robinson,  Alanson  Ripley,  and 
others;  who  were  charged  with  the  several  crimes  of  high 
treason    against    the     State,    murder,     burglary,    arson, 

ROBBERY,    and    LARCENY. 

"  Sampson  Avard,  a  witness  produced,  sworn,  and  examined  ou 
behalf  of  the  State,  deposeth  and  saith  :  '  That  about  four  months  ago, 
a  band,  called  the  Daughter  of  Zion,  (since  called  the  Danite  Band.) 
was  formed  of  the  members  of  the  Mormon  Church,  the  original 
object  of  which  was  to  drive  from  the  county  of  Caldwell  all  those 
who  dissented  from  tlie  Mormon  Church;  in  which  they  succeeded 
admirably,  and  to  the  satisfaction  of  those  concerned.  /  consider 
Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  as  the  prime  mover  and  organizer  of  this  Danite 
Band.  The  officers  of  the  band,  according  to  tlieir  grades,  were 
brought  before  him,  at  a  school-house,  together  with  Hyrum  Smith 
and  Sidney  Rigdon  ;  the  three  composing  the  First  Presidency  of 
the  whole  Church.  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  blessed  them,  and  prophesied 
over  them;  declaring  that  they  should  be  the  means,  in  the  hands  of 
God,  of  bringing  forth  the  millennial  kingdom.  It  was  stated  by 
Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  that  it  was  necessary  that  this  band  should  be 
bound  together,  by  a  covenant,  that  those  who  revealed  the  secrets  of 
the  Society  should  be  put  to  death.     The  covenant  taken  by  tiie 


EVIDENCE    GIVEN   BEFORE    JUDGE    KWC.  8'^5 

Danite  Band  was  as  follows,  to  wit :  They  declared,  holdinir  up 
their  right  hands,  "  In  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of  God,  I 
do  solemnly  obligate  myself  ever  to  conceal,  and  never  to  reveal, 
the  secret  purposes  of  this  society,  called  the  Daughter  of  Zion. 
Should  I  ever  do  the  same,  I  hold  my  life  as  the  forfeiture."  The 
Prophet,  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  together  with  his  two  councillors,  (Hy- 
rum  Smith  and  Sidney  Rigdon,)  were  considered  <is  the  supreme  head 
of  the  Church;  and  the  Danite  Band  felt  themselves  as  much  bound  to 
ohctj  than,  us  to  obey  the  Supreme  God.  Instruction  was  given  by 
Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  that  if  any  of  them  should  get  into  a  difficulty, 
the  rest  should  help  him  out ;  and  that  they  should  stand  by  each 
other,  RIGHT  OR  wrong.  This  instruction  was  given  at  a  Danite 
meeting  in  a  public  address.     ^     *     * 

" '  At  the  election  last  August,  a  report  came  to  Far  West,  that  some 
of  the  brethren  in  Daviess  county  were  killed.  I  called  for  twenty 
volunteers  to  accompany  me  to  Daviess  to  see  into  this  matter.  1 
went,  and  about  one  hundred  Mormons  accompanied  me  to  Adani-on- 
diahmon  —  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  in  company.  When  I  arrived 
there, I  found  the  report  exaggerated.  JVone  were  killed.  We  visited 
Mr.  Adam  Black  —  about  1-50  or  200  men  of  us  armed.  Joseph 
Smith,  Jr.,  was  commander;  and  if  Black  had  not  sirrned  the  paper 
he  did,  it  was  the  common  understanding,  and  belief,  that  he  loould 
have  shared  the  fute  of  the  dissenters!     *     *     * 

'"Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  the  Sunday  before  the  late  disturbances  in 
Daviess,  at  a  churcli  meeting,  gave  notice  that  he  wished  the  whole 
county  collected  on  the  next  day  (Monday)  at  Far  West.  He 
declared  (on  Sunday  or  Monday  —  I  don't  recollect  which)  that  all 
iHto  did  not  takcnp  anus  in  defence  of  the  Mormons  of  Daviess  should 
be  considered  as  turies,  and  shou'l.d  take  their  exit  from  the  county. 

"  '  At  the  meeting  on  Monday,  when  persons  met  from  all  parts  of 
the  county  of  Caldwell,  Josepji  Smith,  Jr.,  took  tiie  pulpit,  and 
delivered  an  address. 

" '  In  the  address,  he  related  an  anecdote  about  a  captain  who 
applied  to  a  Dutchman  to  purchase  potatoes,  wiio  refused  to  soil. 
The  captain  then  charged  his  company  several  different  times,  not 
to  touch  the  Dutchman's  potatoes.  In  the  morning,  the  Dutchman 
had  not  a  potatoe  left  in  his  whole  patch  !  This  was  in  reference  to 
touching  no  property  in  our  expedition  to  Daviess  county  tliat  did 
not  belong  to  us,  but  he  told  us  that  the  children  of  God  did  not  go  to 
war  at  their  oicn  expense.  «*;*■»*** 

"'  Lyman  Wight  observed  that,  before  the  winter  was  over,  ho 
thought  we  would  be  in  Sr.  Louis,  and  take  it.  Smith  charged 
them  that  they  should  be  united  in  supporting  each  other.  Smith 
said,  on  some  occasions,  that  one  should  chase  a  thousand,, and  two 
put  ten  tiiousand  to  flight;  that  he  considered  the  United  States 
rotten.  He  compared  the  Mormon  Church,  to  the  little  stone  spoken  of 
by  the  prophet  Daniel,  and  the  dissenters  first,  and  the  State  next,  was 
part  of  the  image  that  should  be  destroved  by  this  little  stone  !  ! 
The  council  was  called  on  to  vote  the  measures  of  Smith,  which  they 
did  unanimously.  On  the  next  day  Captain  Patten  (who  was  called 
by  the  Prophet,  Captain  Fearnought)  took  command  of  about  one 
23 


326  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

hundred  armed  men,  and  told  them  that  he  had  a  job  for  them  to  do, 
and  that  the  work  of  the  Lord  was  rolling-  on.  and  they  must  be 
united.  He  then  led  the  troops  to  G:illatin,  saying  he  was  going  to 
attack  the  mob  there.  He  made  a  rush  into  Gallatin,  dispersing  the 
few  men  there,  and  took  the  goods  out  of  StoUing's  store,  and  carried 
them  to  ' Diahmon,  and  I  aflerioards  saio  the  s'orthouse  on  fire. 
When  we  returned  to  'Diahmon,  the  goods  were  deposited  in  the 
Lord's  storehouse,  u^'der  the  c.^re  of  Bishop  Visso.v  Ksight!  !  I 
Orders  were  strictly  given  tliat  all  tlie  goods  should  be  deposited  in 
the  Lord's  storehouse.  No  individuals  were  to  appropriate  any 
thing  to  themselves  until  a  ge.nerai.  distkibutiox  should  be  made. 
Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  was  at  Adain-on-diahmon,  giving  directions  about 
things  in  general  connected  with  the  war.  \Vhen  Patten  returned 
from  Gallatin  to  Adam-on-diahmon,  the  goods  were  divided,  or  appor- 
tioned Old,  among  those  engaged;  and  these  affairs  were  condactcd 
under  the  superintendence  of  the  First  Presidency  [     *     *     * 

"  '  Some  months  ago,  I  received  orders  to  destroy  the  paper  con- 
cerning the  Danite  Society  ;  which  order  was  issued  by  the  First 
Presidency,  and  which  paper,  being  the  Constitution  ibr  the  govern- 
ment of  the  Danite  Society,  was  in  my  custody,  but  which  I  did  not 
destroy.  It  is  nov/  in  General  Clark's  possession.  I  gave  the  paper 
up  to  General  Clark  after  I  was  taken  prisoner.  I  found  it  in  my 
purse,  where  I  had  previously  deposited  it,  and  believe  it  never  had 
been  in  any  person's  possession  after  I  first  received  it.  This  paper 
was  taken  into  President  Rigdon  s  house,  and  read  to  the  Prophet 
and  his  Councillors,  and  was  unanimously  adopted  by  them  as  their 
rule  and  guide  in  future.  After  it  was  thus  adopted,  I  was  instructed 
by  the  Council  to  destroy  it,  as,  if  it  should  be  discovered,  it  would 
be  considered  treasonable.  This  Constitution,  after  it  was  ap- 
proved by  the  First  Presidency,  was  read,  article  by  article,  to  tlie 
Danite  Band,  and  unanimously  adopted  by  them.  This  paper  was 
"drawii  up  about  tlie  time  the  Danite  Band  was  formed.  Since  the 
drav/ing  up  of  the  paper  against  the  dissenters,  it  was  that  this  Con- 
stitution of  tiie  Danite  Band  was  draughted  ;  but  I  have  no  minutes 
of  the  lime,  as  we  were  directed  not  to  keep  written  minutes;  which 
Constitution,  above  referred  to,  is  as  follows  :  — 

" '  "Whereas,  in  all  bodies,  laws  are  necessary  for  the  permanency, 
safety,  and  well-being  of  society,  we,  the  members  of  the  society  of 
the  Daughter  of  Zion,  do  ao-ree  to  regulate  ourselves  under  such 
laws  as,  in  righteousness,  shall  be  deemed  necessary  for  the  preser- 
vation of  our  holy  religion,  and  of  our  most  sacred  rights,  and  of  the 
rights  of  our  wives  and  children.  But,  to  be  explicit  on  the  subject, 
it  is  especially  our  object  to  support  and  defend  the  rights  conferred 
on  us  by  our  venerable  sires,  who  purchased  them  with  the  pledgee 
of  their  lives,  their  fortunes,  and  their  sacred  honors.  And  now,  to 
prove  ourselves  worthy  of  the  liberty  conferred  on  us  by  them,  in 
the  providence  of  God,  we  do  agree  to  be  governed  by  such  laws  as 
shall  perpetuate  these  high  privilesres,  of  which  v.e  know  ourselves 
to  be  the  rigrhtful  possessors,  and  of  which  privileges  wicked  and  de- 
signing men  have  tried  to  deprive  us,  by  all  manner  of  evil,  and 
that  purely  in  consequence  of  the  tenacity  we  have  manifested  in 


EVIDENCE    GIVEN   I3EF0RE    JUDGE    KING.  327 

the  discharge  of  our  duty  towards  our  God,  who  had  given  us  those 
rights  and  privileges,  and  a  right,  in  common  witli  others,  to  dwell 
on  this  land.  But  we,  not  havmg  the  privileges  of  others  allowed 
unto  us,  have  determined,  like  unto  our  fathers,  to  resist  tyranny, 
whether  it  be  in  kings  or  in  the  people.  It  is  all  alike  unto  us.  Our 
rights  we  must  have,  and  our  rights  we  shall  have,  in  the  name  of 
Israel's  God. 

"'Art.  1.  All  power  belongs  originally  and  legitimately  to  the 
people,  and  they  have  a  right  to  dispose  of  it  as  they  shall  deem  fit; 
but,  as  it  is  inconvenient  and  impossible  to  convene  the  people  in  all 
cases,  the  legislative  powers  have  been  given  by  them,  from  time  to 
time,  into  the  hands  of  a  representation  composed  of  delegates  from 
the  people  themselves.  This  is  and  has  been  the  law,  both  in  civil 
and  religious  bodies,  and  is  the  true  priaiciple. 

"  '  Art.  2.  The  executive  power  shall  be  vested  in  the  President 
of  the  ickolc  Church,  and  his  Councillors. 

"'Art.  3.  The  legislative  powers  shall  reside  in  the  President 
and  his  Councillors  together,  and  with  the  Generals  and  Colonels  of 
the  society.     By  them  all  laws  shall  be  made  regulating  the  society. 

"  '  Art.  4.  All  offices  sliall  be  during  life  and  good  behavior,  or 
to  be  regulated  by  the  law  of  God. 

"'  Art.  5.  The  society  reserves  the  power  of  electing  its  own  of- 
ficers, with  tlie  exception  of  the  Aids  and  Clerks  whiclf  the  officers 
may  need  in  their  various  stations ;  the  nomination  to  go  from  the 
Presidency  to  his  second,  and  from  the  second  to  the  third  in  rank, 
and  so  down  through  all  the  various  grades.  Each  branch  or  de- 
partment retains  the  power  of  electing  its  own  particular  officers. 

"  '  Art.  C.     Punishments  shall  be  administered  to  the  guilty  in  ac- 
cordance to  the  offisnce ;  and  no  member  shall  be  punished  without 
law,  or  by  any  others  than  those  appointed  by  law  for  that  purpose. 
The  legislature  sliall  have  power  to  make  laws  regulating  punish 
viciits,  as  IN  THEIR  JUDGMENT  shall  be  wisdom  and  righteousness.     ' 

"  '  Art.  7.  There  shall  be  a  Secretary,  whose  business  it  shall  be 
to  keep  all  the  legislative  records  of  the  society;  also  to  keep  a  regris- 
ter  of  tiie  names  of  every  member  of  the  society ;  also  the  rankof 
the  officers.  He  shall  also  communicate  the  laws  to  the  Generals, 
as  directed  by  laws  made  for  the  regulation  of  such  business  by  the 
legislature. 

"  '  Art.  8.  All  officers  shall  be  subject  to  the  commands  of  the 
Captain- General,  given  through  the  Secretary  of  War ;  and  so  all 
officers  shall  be  subject  to  their  superiors  in  rank,  according  to  laws 
made  for  that  purpose. 

" '  In  cormection  with  the  grand  scheme  of  the  Prophet,  his  Preach- 
ers and  Apostles  were  instructed  to  preach  to  and  instruct  their  fol- 
lowers, (who  are  estimated  in  Europe  and  America  at  about  40,000,) 
that  it  was  their  duty  to  come  up  to  the  State  called  Far  West, 
and  to  2J0SSCSS  the  Kingdom  ;  that  it  loas  the  will  of  God  they  should 
do  SO ;  and  thai  the  Lord  loould  give  them  po7cer  to  possess  the 
Kingdom.  There  was  another  writing  drawn  up,  in  June  last, 
which  had  for  its  object  to  get  rid  of  the  dissenters,  and  which  had 
the  desired  effect ;  (this  is  the  paper  drawn  up  against  the  dissent- 


328  HISTORY   OF   THE    SAINTS. 

ers  referred  to  by  the  witness.)  Since  that  time,  and  since  the  in- 
troduction of  the  scheme  of  the  Prophet,  made  known  in  the  above 
Constitution,  I  have  heard  the  Prophet  say  that  it  was  a  fortunate 
thing  that  we  got  rid  of  the  dissenters,  as  tliey  would  have  endan- 
gered the  rolling  on  of  the  Kingdom  of  God  as  introduced,  and  to 
be  carried  into  effect,  by  the  Danite  Band  ;  that  they,  the  dissent- 
ers, were  great  obstacles  in  their  waj' ;  and  that,  unless  they  were 
removed,  the  aforesaid  Kingdom  could  not  roll  on.  [This  paper 
against  the  dissenters  is  as  follows  :  — ] 

"'Far  West,  June,  1838. 
" '  To  Oliver  Cowdery,  David  Whitmer,  John  Whitmer, 
William  W.  Phelps,  and  Lyman  E.  Johnson,  greeting : 
" '  Whereas  the  citizens  of  Caldwell  county  have  borne  with  the 
abuse  received  from  you,  at  different  times,  and  on  different  occa- 
sions, until  it  is  no  longer  to  be  endured;  neither  will  they  endure 
it  any  longer,  having  exhausted  all  the  patience  they  have,  and  con- 
ceive that  to  bear  any  longer  is  a  vice  instead  of  a  virtue.  We  have 
borne  long,  and  suffered  incredibly ;  but  we  will  neither  bear  nor 
suffer  any  longer ;  and  the  decree  has  gone  fortli  from  our  hearts, 
and  shall  not  return  to  us  void.  Neither  think,  gentlemen,  that,  in 
so  saying,  we  are  trifling  with  either  you  or  ourselves ;  for  we  are 
not.  There  are  no  threats  from  you  —  no  fear  of  losing  our  lives  by 
you,  or  by  any  thing  you  can  say  or  do,  will  restrain  us ;  for  out  of 
the  couviy  you  shall  go,  and  no  power  shall  save  you.  And  you 
shall  have  three  days  after  you  receive  this  communication  to  you, 
including  twenty-four  hours  in  each  day,  for  you  to  depart  with  your 
families,  peaceably  ;  which  you  may  do,  undisturbed  by  any  person ; 
but  in  that  time,  if  you  do  not  depart,  we  will  use  the  means  in  our 
power  to  cause  you  to  depart;  for  go  you  shall.  We  will  have 
no  more  promises  to  reform,  as  you  have  already  done,  and  in  every 
instance  violated  your  promise,  and  regarded  not  the  covenant  which 
you  had  made,  but  put  both  it  and  us  at  defiance.  We  have  solemn- 
ly warned  you,  and  that  in  the  most  determined  manner,  that  if  you 
did  not  cease  that  course  of  wanton  abuse  of  the  citizens  of  this 
county,  that  vengeance  would  overtake  you,  sooner  or  later,  and 
that  when  it  did  come  it  would  be  as  furious  as  the  vioutitain  torrent, 
and  as  terrible  as  the  beating  tempest ;  but  you  have  affected  to  de- 
spise our  warnings,  and  pass  them  off  with  a  sneer,  or  a  grin,  or  a 
threat,  and  pursued  your  former  course ;  and  vengeance  sleepeth  not, 
neither  does  it  slumber;  and  unless  you  heed  us  this  time,  and 
attend  to  our  request,  it  will  overtake  you  at  an  hour  when  you 
do  not  expect,  and  at  a  day  tchen  you  do  not  look  for  it;  and  for  you 
there  shall  be  no  escape;  for  there  is  but  one  decree  for  you, 
which  is,  Depart,  depart,  or  a  more  fatal  calamity  shall  befall  you. 

"  '  The  above  was  signed  by  some  83  Mormons. 

*  *  *  '"1  have  looked  upon  him  [Hyrum  Smith]  as 
one  composing  the  First  Presidency;  acting  in  concert  with  Joseph 
Smith,  Jr.,  approving,  by  his  presence,  acts,  and  conversations,  the 
unlawful  schemes  of  the  Presidency.    *    *    « 


EVIDENCE   GIVEN   BEFORE    JUDGE    KING.  329 

" '  I  was  continually  in  the  society  of  the  Presidency,  receiving 
instructions  from  them  as  to  the  teachings  of  the  Danite  Band  ;  and 
I  continually  inibrnied  them  of  ray  teachings;  and  they  were  well 
apprized  of  my  course  and  teachings  in  the  Danite  Society. 

" '  And  further  this  deponent  saith  not. 

"  '  Sampson  Avard.  '  " 


"  Maurice  Phelps,  a.  witness  produced,  sworn,  and  examined,  for 
the  State,  deposeth  and  saith  :  <  That     ****** 

" '  On  our  return  from  the  battle-ground,  near  Log  Creek  timber, 
in  Caldwell  county,  we  met  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  Lyman  Wight,  and 
others,  who  went  to  the  wounded  and  pronounced  blessings  on 
them,  and  prayed  for  them  to  be  healed  and  saved.  When  we 
started  from  McDaniel's  field  fence,  the  only  command  given,  that  I 
heard,  was,  "  Boys,  follow  me  ! ''  given  by  the  commander.  I  have 
been  in  two  Danite  meetings.  The  first,  I  did  not  make  any  excep- 
tion to ;  but,  in  the  second,  the  following  exceptionable  doctrine  was 
inculcated:  '■'■  that  we  should  take  spoil,  or  plunder,  in  sojie  cases." 

"  '  The  day  before  the  Mormons  went  to  Jldam-on-Diahmon,  J. 
Smith,  Jr.,  in  an  address,  told  an  anecdote  of  a  Dutchman  who  had 
been  applied  to  by  a  captain  to  purchase  potatoes,  «&c. 

"  '  And  further  this  deponent  saith  not.      Maurice  Phelps.'  " 


"JoAji  Corrill,  a  witness  produced,  sworn,  and  examined,  in 
behalf  of  the  State,  deposeth  and  saith  :  '  That  about  last  June  I 
was  invited  to  a  private  meeting,  in  which  an  effort  was  made  to 
adopt  some  plan  to  get  rid  of  the  dissenters.  There  were  some 
things  I  did  not  like,  and  opposed  it,  with  others,  and  failed.  After 
that,  I  met  President  Rigdox,  and  he  told  me  I  ought  not  to  have 
any  thing  to  do  loith  it ;  tliat  they  would  do  as  they  pleased.  /  took 
Ids  advice.  I  learned  afterwards  that  they  had  secret  meetings ;  but 
I  was  never  invited.         *         «         * 

" '  In  a  few  days,  there  seemed  considerable  excitement  among 
the  people,  and  the  dissenters  left,  as  I  advised  them  theij  loere  in. 
danger.  I  was  afterwards  invited  to  one  of  these  meetings,  where 
an  oath,  in  substance  the  same  as  testified  to  by  Doctor  Avard, 
was  administered.  The  society  was  ultimately  organized  into  com- 
panies, and  captains  of  tens  and  fifties  were  appointed.  I  took  ex- 
ceptions only  to  the  teachings  as  to  the  duties  of  that  society,  where- 
in it  was  said,  if  one  brother  got  into  any  kind  of  a  difficulty,  it  was 
the  duty  of  the  rest  to  help  him  out,  right  or  wrong. 

"  '  In  the  last,  or  in  some  public  meeting,  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  said, 
if  the  people  would  let  us  alone,  we  would  preach  the  gospel  to 
them  in  peace  ;  but,  if  they  came  on  us  to  molest  us,  tee  icould  estab- 

23* 


S30  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

lish  our  reUgio7ily  the  sword;   and  that  he  would  become  to 

THIS  generation  A  SECOND  MaHOMET. 

"  '  This  Mormon  Church  has  been  represented  as  being  the  little 
stone  spoken  of  by  Daniel,  which  should  roll  on  and  crush  all 
OPPOSITION  TO  IT,  and  ultimately  should  be  established  as  a  tempo- 
ral as  well  as  a  spiritual  Kingdom.  These  things  were  to  be  car- 
ried on  through  the  instrumentality  of  the  Danite  Band,  as  far  as 
force  was  necessary,  if  necessary,  they  being  organized  into  bands 
of  tens,  fifties,  &c.,  ready  for  war.  The  teachings  of  that  society 
led  them  to  prohibit  the  talkings  of  any  persons  against  the  Presi- 
dency; so  much  so,  that  it  was  dangerous  for  any  man  to  set  up 
opposition  td  any  thing  that  might  he  set  on  foot,  and  I  became  afraid 
to  speak  my  own  mind.         *««*««* 

" '  On  Sunday,  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  in  his  discourse,  spoke  of  per- 
sons' taking,  at  some  times,  what,  at  other  times,  it  would  be  wrong 
to  take;  and  gave,  as  an  example,  the  case  of  David  eating  tlie 
shewbread,  and  also  of  the  Savior  and  his  Apostles  plucking  the 
ears  of  corn  and  eating,  as  they  passed  through  the  cornfield. 

"  '  No  persons  were  suffered  to  leave  the  county  in  this  extreme 
time,  and  I  met  with  Phelps  to  consult  as  to  what  we  ought  to  do. 
After  the  troops  got  to  'Diahmon,  in  all  about  four  or  five  hundred 
men,  I  heard  Lyman  Wight  addressing  a  portion  of  the  men  who 
were  there,  —  "that  the  earth  was  the  Lord's,  and  the  fulness 
thereof,  with  the  cattle  upon  a  thousand  hills;  and  if  I  was  a 
hungry,  1  would  not  tell  you ;  "  that  the  Saints  of  the  Lord  had  the 
same  privilege  or  rights.  Afler  that,  or  perhaps  the  next  day,  I 
sa.w  a  drove  of  some  four  or  five  cattle  pass  along,  and  asked  what 
cattle  these  were  ;  and  was  answered  that  they  were  a  drove  of 
buffalo;  others  observed,  they  were  cattle  a  Methodist  priest  had 
consecrated  ! 

"'  Smith,  the  Prophet,  here  asked  him  [Wight]  if  they  had  taken 
the  negroes.  He  said,  "  Yes."  Some  one  then  laughingly  ob- 
served, "  Smith,  1J0U  have  lost  ijour  negro.''''         *         *         «         * 

"  '  I  think  the  original  object  of  the  Danite  Band  was  to  operata 
on  the  dissenters ;  but  afterwards  it  grew  into  a  system  to  carry  out 
the  designs  of  the  Presidency;  and,  if  necessary,  to  use  physical 
FORCE  to  upbuild  the  Kingdom  of  God ;  it  was  to  be  done  by  them. 

" '  And  further  this  deponent  saith  not. 

•"John  Corrill.'" 


^^  James  C.  Owens,  a  witness  produced,  sworn,  and  examined,  on 
behalf  of  the  State,  deposeth  and  saith :  '  In  the  morning  of  the  day 
that  the  militia  arrived  at  Far  West,  I  heard  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  in  a. 
speech  to  the  Mormon  troops,  say  that  he  did  not  care  any  thing 
about  the  coming  of  the  troops,  nor  about  the  laws  ;  *  *  and 
that  he  did  not  intend  to  try  to  ke»p  the  laws,  or  please  them  any 


EVIDENCE    GIVEN    BEFORE    JUDGE    KING.  331 

longer; — that  they  were  a  damned  set,  and  God  should  damn 
them,  so  help  him  Jesus  Christ;  that  he  meant  to  go  on  them  as  he 
had  begun,  and  take  his  own  course,  and  kill  and  destrov,  and 
told  the  men  to  fight  like  angels;  that  heretofore  he  told  them  to 
fight  like  devils,  but  now  he  told  them  to  fight  like  angels;  that  an- 
gels could  whip  devils.  *  *  *  ^  *  *  *  * 
He  swore  considerably,  and  observed  that  they  might  think  that  he 
was  swearing  ;  but  that  God  Almighty  would  not  take  notice  of  him 
in  cursing  such  a  damned  set  as  they  were.  ***** 
He  stated,  at  that  or  some  other  time,  that  as  they  had  commenced 
consecrating  in  Daviess  county,  that  he  intended  to  have  the  sur- 
rounding counties  consecrated  to  him  ;  that  the  time  had  come  when 
the  riches  of  the  Gentiles  should  he  consecrated  to  the  Saints .'  ! 

"  '  And  further  this  deponent  saith  not. 

"'James  C.  Oweks.'  " 


"  John  Cleminson,  a  witness  produced,  sworn,  and  examined,  in 
behalf  of  the  State,  deposeth  and  saith :  '  Some  time  in  June,  I  at- 
tended two  or  three  Danite  meetings ;  and  it  was  taught  there,  as  a 
part  of  the  duty  of  the  band,  that  they  should  support  the  Presi- 
dency in  alt  their  designs,  right  or  wrong  ;  that  whatever  they 
said  was  to  be  obeyed,  and  whoever  opposed  the  Presidency  in  what 
they  said,  or  desired  done,  should  be  expelled  the  county,  or  have 
their  lives  taken.  The  three  composing  the  Presidency  were  at  one 
of  those  meetings ;  and,  to  satisfy  the  people,  Doctor  Avard  called 
on  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  who  gave  them  a  pledge,  that  if  they  led 
them  into  difficultj^,  he  would  give  them  his  head  for  a  foot-ball, 
and  that  it  was  the  will  of  God  these  things  should  be  so.  The 
teacher  and  active  agent  of  the  society  was  Doctor  Avard,  and  his 
teachincFS  were  approved  of  by  the  Presidency.  Doctor  Avard  further 
taught,°as  a  part  of  their  obligation,  that  if  any  one  betrayed  the 
secret  designs  of  the  society,  he  should  he  killed  and  laid  aside,  and 
nothing  said  about  it!  *        *        *        *        *        *        *' 

"  '  A  great  deal  of  other  property  was  brought  into  the  Mormon 
camps ;  but  I  do  not  know  where  it  came  from,  but  understood  it  to 
be  consecrated  property.  It  was  frequently  observed  among  the 
troops,  that  the  time  had  come  when  the  riches  of  the  Gentiles 
should  be  consecrated  to  the  Saints. 

"  '  And  further  this  deponent  saith  not. 

" '  John  Cleminson.'  " 


"  Reed  Peck,  a  witness  produced,  sworn,  and  examined,  on  behalf 
of  the  State,  deposeth  and  saith  :  '  A  short  time  after  Cowdery  and 

the  Whitmers  left  Far  West,  (some  time  in  June,) and 

Philo  Dibble  invited  me  to  a  Danite  meeting.     I  went;  and  the 


332  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

only  speaker  v/as  Doctor  Avard,  who  explained  the  object  of  the 
meeting,  and  said  that  its  object  was,  that  we  might  be  perfectly 
organized  to  defend  ourselves  *  *  ;  that  we  were  all  to  be 
governed  by  the  Presidency,  and  do  whatever  they  required,  and 
uphold  them;  that  ice  were  not  to  judge  for  ourselves  whether  it  iverc 
right  or  lorong ;  that  God  had  raised  up  a  Prophet  who  would 
judge  for  21s;  and  that  it  was  proper  we  should  stand  by  each  other 
in  all  cases  ;  and  he  gave  us  an  example  :  If  we  found  one  of  the 
Danites  in  a  difficulty,  in  Ray  or  Clay,  for  instance,  we  should  rescue 
him,  if  we  had  to  do  with  his  adversary  as  Moses  did  with  the 
Egyptian  —  put  him  in  the  sand!!!  It  made  no  difference 
whether  the  Danite  was  to  blame,  or  not ;  they  would  pack  to  Far 
West,  and  there  be  taken  care  of. 

"  '  I  was  present  at  one  meeting  when  the  officers  of  the  society 
were  presented  and  introduced  to  the  Presidency,  each  officer  re- 
ceivintr  a  blessing  from  them.     «     «     * 

"  '  I  heard  Avard,  on  one  occasion,  say  that  the  Danites  were  to 
consecrate  their  surplus  property,  and  to  come  in  by  tens  to  do  so ; 
and  if  they  lied  about  it  —  he  said  Peter  killed  Jlnanias  and  Sap- 
phira,  and  that  zvould  be  an  example  for  us.     *     *     ^ 

"  '  On  the  day  before  the  last  expedition  to  Daviess,  I  heard  Jo- 
seph Smith,  Jr.,  in  a  speech,  say,  in  reference  to  stealing,  that  in 
a  general  way  he  did  not  approve  of  it;  but  that,  on  one  occasion, 
our  Savior  and  his  disciples  stole  corn  in  passing  through  the  corn- 
fields, for  the  reason  that  they  could  not  otherwise  procure  any  thing 
to  eat.  He  told  an  anecdote  of  a  Dutchman's  potatoes,  and  said,  in 
substance,  that  a  colonel  or  captain  was  quartered  near  a  Dutchman, 
from  whom  he  wished  to  purchase  some  potatoes,  who  refused  to 
sell  them.  The  officer  then  charged  his  men  not  to  be  caught 
stealing  the  Dutchman's  potatoes ;  but  next  morning  he  found  his 
])otatoes  all  dug.     «     «     * 

"  '  When  tlie  troops  arrived  at  'Diahmon,  they  were  divided  into 
companies  of  twenty,  forty,  fifty,  &.C.,  just  as  they  might  be  called 
for.  These  companies  were  sent  out  in  different  parts  of  the  coun- 
try, as  I  saw  them  thus  occasionally  going  out  and  coming  in.  I 
saw  a  company  of  about  fifty,  called  a  Fur  Company,  come  once. 
Some  had  one  thing  and  some  another ;  one  I  saw  with  a  feather 
bed  ;  another  had  some  spun  yarn.  I  understood  from  some  of 
those  who  were  bringing  property,  that  they  were  to  take  it  to  the 
Bishop's  store,  and  deposit  it;  and  if  they  failed  to  do  so,  it  would 
be  considered  stealing  /      *     *     * 

" '  I  heard  Perry  Keyes,  one  who  was  engaged  in  the  depredations 
in  Daviess,  say  that  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  remarked,  in  his  presence, 
that  it  was  his  intention,  after  they  got  through  in  Daviess,  to  go 
down  and  take  the  store  in  Carrolltcn.  Tliis  remark  Smith  made 
while,  in  Daviess.  After  the  Mormon  troops  returned  to  Far  West 
from  Daviess,  I  saw  several  of  the  captains  of  tens,  who  had  been 
in  that  expedition,  making  out  a  list  of  their  men,  for  the  purpose, 
as  they  said,  of  being  handed  in,  that  they  might  receive  their  'portion 
of  the  SPOILS. 


EVIDENCE    GIVEN    BEFORE    JUDGE    KING.  333 

"  '  Some  time  previous  to  the  difficulties  in  Daviess,  the  first  time 
when  the  militia  went  out  there  for  the  purpose  of  keeping  the 
peace,  I  heard  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  in  a  public  address,  say  that  he 
had  a  reverence  for  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States  and  of  this 
State  ;  but,  as  for  the  laws  of  t/ils  State,  he  did  not  intend  to  regard 
them,  nor  to  care  any  thing  about  them,  as  they  were  made  by  laicyers 
and  blacklegs. 

"  '  In  that  council  Avard  said,  an  arrangement  was  made  to  dispose 
of  the  dissenters,  to  wit:  that  all  the  head  officers  of  the  Danite 
Band  should  have  a  list  of  the  dissenters,  both  here  and  in  Kirlland ; 
"  and,"  said  he,  "  I  will  tell  you  how  I  will  do  them :  when  I  meet 
one  damning  the  Presidency,  1  can  damn  them  as  well  as  he  ;  "  and, 
if  he  wanted  to  drink,  he  would  get  a  bowl  of  brandy,  and  get  hini 
half-drunk,  and,  taking  him  by  the  arm,  he  would  take  him  to  the 
woods  or  brush,  '•  and,'  said  he,  "  would  be  into  their  guts  in  a  minute, 

and  PUT    THEM    UNDER    THE    SOD  "  !  !  ! 

' '  And  further  this  deponent  saith  not. 

"'Reed  Peck,'" 


"  William  W.  Phelps,  a  witness  on  the  part  of  the  State,  produced, 
sworn,  and  examined,  deposeth  and  saith  :  '  That 

"  '  It  was  observed  in  the  meeting,  that  if  any  person  spoke  against 
the  Presidency,  they  would  hand  him  over  to  the  hands  of  the 
Brother  of  Gideon. 

"  '  The  object  of  the  meeting  seemed  to  be  to  make  persons  con- 
fess and  repent  of  their  sins  to  God  and  the  Presidency ;  and  ar- 
raigned them,  for  giving  false  accounts  of  their  money  and  effects 
they  had  on  hand  ;  and  they  said,  whenever  they  found  one  guilty 
of  these  things,  they  were  to  be  handed  over  to  the  Brother  of 
Gideon.  Several  were  found  guilty,  and  handed  over  as  they  said. 
I  yet  did  not  know  what  was  meant  by  this  expression,  the  '  Brother 
of  Gideon.'  Not  a  great  while  after  this,  secret  or  private  meetings 
were  held ;  I  endeavored  to  find  out  what  they  were,  and  I  learned, 
from  John  Corrill  and  others,  they  were  forming  a  secret  society, 
called  Danites,  formerly  called  the  Brother  of  Gideon. 

*********** 

*' '  I  remarked  to  him,  I  thought  such  a  thing  treasonable  —  to  set 
up  a  government  within  a  government.  He  [D.  W.  Patten]  an- 
swered, it  would  not  be  treasonable  if  they  would  maintain  it,  or 
fight  till  they  died.  Dimick  B.  Huntington,  and  some  others,  made 
about  the  same  remark. 

"  '  There  was  a  short  speech  made  then,  by  Joseph  Smith,  Jr., 
about  carrying  on  the  war;  in  which  he  said,  it  was  necessary  to 
have  something  to  live  on ;  and,  when  they  went  out  to  war,  it  was 


334  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

necessary  to  take  spoils  to  live  on.  This  was  in  reference  to  the 
dissenters,  as  well  as  to  the  people  of  Daviess,  where  they  were 
going.  In  this  speech  he  told  the  anecdote  of  the  Dutchman's 
potatoes. 

"  '  Wight  asked  J.  Smith,  Jr.,  twice,  if  he  had  come  to  the  point 
now  to  resist  the  law;  tliat  he  wanted  this  matter  now  distinctly 
understood.  He  said  he  had  succeeded  in  smoothing  the  matter 
over  with  Judge  King,  when  he  was  out ;  and  tiiat  he  defied  the 
Unite'd  States  to  take  him;  but  that  he  had  submitted  to  be  taken, 
because  he  (Smith)  had  done  so.  This  was  in  reference  to  the  ex- 
amination for  tlie  offence  for  which  he  and  Smith  had  been  brought 
before  Judge  King  in  Daviess.  Smith  replied,  the  time  had  come 
when  HE  SHOULD  resist  all  law  ! ! ! 

"  '  And  further  tliis  deponent  saith  not. 

«"W.  W    Phelps.'" 


"  George  M.  Hiuklc,  a  witness  for  the  State,'produced,  sworn,  and 
examined,  deposeth  and  saith  : 

"  '  There  was  much  mysterious  conversation  in  camps,  as  uO 
plundering  and  house-burning;  so  much  so,  that  I  had  my  own 
notions  about  it;  and,  on  one  occasion,  I  spoke  to  Mr.  Smith,  Jr., 
in  the  house,  and  told  him  that  this  course  of  burning  houses  and 
plundering,  by  the  Mormon  troops,  would  ruin  us ;  that  it  could  not 
be  kept  hid,  and  would  bring  the  force  of  the  State  upon  us ;  that 
houses  would  be  searched,  and  stolen  property  found.  Smith 
replied  to  me,  in  a  pretty  rough  manner,  to  keep  stilt ;  that  I  should 
say  nothing  about  it;  that  it  would  discourage  the  men,  and  he  would 
not  suffer  me  to  say  any  thing  about  it.  Again,  in  a  private  conver- 
sation, I  said  to  him  I  would  not  raise  a  mutiny  by  saying  any  thing 
publicly ;  but  I  wished  to  talk  to  him  privately,  not  wishing,  how- 
ever, to  set  myself  up  above  him  in  tlie  matter,  but  tliat  I  wished  to 
do  it  for  the  good  of  the  Church.  I  knew  this  was  the  way  I  could 
get  to  talk  with  him.  I  explained  myself  more  fully  than  when  in 
the  house ;  and  told  him  I  thought  tilings  were  running  to  a  dan- 
gerous extreme,  and  he  ought  to  exercise  his  influence  to  stop  it,  as 
this  course  of  things  would  ruin  his  people.  He  answered  that  I 
was  mistaken,  and  that  J  was  scared,  and  that  this  was  the  only  way 
to  gain  our  liberty  and  our  point  ! ! !         *         *         *         *         * 

'"  I  saw  a  great  deal  of  plunder  and  bee-stands  brought  into 
camp ;  and  I  saw  many  persons,  for  many  days,  taking  the  honey 
out  of  them;  I  understood  this  property  and  plunder  were  placed 
into  the  hands  of  the  Bishop  at  'Diahmon,  named  Vinson  Knight, 
to  be  divided  out  among  tiiem,  as  their  wants  might  require.  There 
were  a  number  of  horses  and  cattle  drove  in,  also  liugs  hauled  in 
dead  with  the  hair  on ;  but  whose  they  were,  I  know  not.  They 
icere  generally  called  consecrated  property  ! 


EVIDENCE    GIVEN   BEFORE    JUDGE    KING.  335 

"  '  I  have  heard  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  say  tlmt  lie  behoved  Mahomet 
was  a  a(wd  man;  that  the  Koran  was  not  a  true  thing,  but  the  u-orld 
helled  Makoviet,  as  they  had  belied  Mm,  and  that  Mahomet  was  a 
TRUE  Prophet  ! !  The  general  teachings  of  the  Presidency  were, 
that  the  Kingdom  they  were  setting  up  was  a  temporai,  as  well  as 
a  spiritual  kingdom  ;  that  it  icas  the  Utile  stone  spoken  of  by  Daniel. 

"  '  It  was  taught,  that  t/ie  time  had,  come  lohcn  the  riches  of  the 
Gentiles  iccre  to  he  consecrated  to  the  true  Israel.  Tins  thing  of  taking 
property  was  considered  a  fulfilment  of  the  above  prophecy. 

»*#«■**»»•*■*« 

"  '  After  we  came  in  from  'Diahmoa  to  Far  West,  from  the  last 
expedition  to  Daviess,  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  said  he  intended  to  hoist  a 
war  fag.,  or  standard,  on  the  square  in  Far  West,  on  which  he  in- 
tended to  write,  "  Religion  aside,  and  free  toleration  to  all  religions, 
and  to  all  people  that  would  fock  to  it;  and  that  he  believed  thousands 
in  the  surrounding  country  would  flock  to  it,  and  give  him  force 
sufHcicnt  to  accomplish  his  designs  in  maintaining  his  flag  and  in 
carrying  on  the  vvar.  The  morning  that  I  marched  to  Far  West,  to 
meet  the  militia  to  confer  with  them,  as  above  referred  to,  Josepji 
Smith,  Jr.,  made  a  speech  to  the  troops  who  were  called  together, 
in  which  he  said  that  the  troops  which  were  gathering  through  the 
country  were  a  damned  mob ;  that  he  had  tried  to  please  them  long 
enough;  tliat  he  had  tried  to  keep  the  laio  long  enough;  but,  as  to 
keeping  the  law  of  Missouri  any  lunger,  he  did  not  intend  to  try  to  do 
so.  Tliat  the  whole  State  was  a  mob  set;  and  that,  if  they  came  to 
fio-ht  him,  he  would  play  hell  with  their  apple-carts!!! 
He  told  his  people  that  they  heretofore  had  the  character  of  fighting 
like  devils,  but  they  should  now  fight  like  angels,  for  angels  could 
whip  devils!  While  in  Daviess,  on  the  last  expedition,  I  mentioned 
the  great  difficulties  the  course  they  were  pursuing  would  likely  get 
them  into;  the  reply  was,  by  a  number  of  them,  that,  as  the  citizens 
had  all  fled,  there  would  be  none  to  prove  it  by  but  themselves,  and 
THEY  COULD  SWEAR  AS  THEY  PLEASED  IN  THE 
Mx\TTER!  I  !  These,  I  believe,  were  of  the  Danite  order!  And 
I  understood  from  them  that  THEY  COULD  SWEAR  EACH 
OTHER    CLEAR,  if  it  should  become  necessary!! 

"  '  In  that  conversation,  while  many  were  present,  I  heard  Lyman 
Wight  say,  that  the  sicord  had  now  been  drawn,  and  should  not  bs 
sheathed  until  he  had  marched  to  De  Witt,  in  Carroll  county,  into 
Jackson  county,  and  into  many  other  places  in  the  State,  and  swore 
that  he  icas  able  to  accomplish  it. 

"  '  And  further  this  deponent  saith  not. 

'"G.    M.    HiNKLE." 


"  Thomas  M.  Odle,  a  witness  for  the  State,  produced,  sworn,  and 
examined,  deposeth  and  saith  :  '  On  the  Saturday  afler  Gallatin  was 


336  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

burnt,  an  armed  company  of  twelve  men  [Morvwns']  rode  up  to 
Mr.  Raglin's  house,  in  Daviess  county,  where  I  resided.  They  in- 
quired ior  Jolin  Raghn.  I  told  thein  where  he  had  gone.  Tliey 
said  their  object  was  to  drive  tlie  mob  [the  citizens]  from  the  county, 
and  that  I  must  go.  I  replied  that  I  could  not;  that  I  had  no  way 
to  get  off,  and  that  my  family  were  barefooted.  They  replied,  that 
made  no  difference,  /  must  go  ;  and  said,  if  I  was  not  gone  by  next 
morning's  sun-rising,  ilicy  laoukl  take  my  life!  They  told  Mrs. 
Raglin  she  must  put  out;  that  there  she  could  not  stay,  and  that 
Raglin  had  better  never  show  himself  there ;  that  they  would  take 
his  life  if  they  ever  set  their  eyes  on  him.  Next  morning,  by  the 
assistance  of  friends,  we  did  start,  leaving  most  of  our  property 
there.  Since  then  I  have  returned,  and  found  the  houses  burnt,  and 
the  property  gone,  consisting  of  household  stuff  and  twenty-nike 

BEE-GUMS. 

"  '  They  further  said  that  they  were  at  the  defiance  of  any  set  of 
men  that  could  come  against  them;  and  that  they  now  intended  to 
make  it  a  war  of  extermination  ! ! 

"  '  And  further  this  deponent  saith  not. 

his 
"'Thomas  M.  X  Odle.'" 
mark. 


"  ^Uen  Rathhun,  a  witness  for  the  State,  produced,  sworn,  and 
examined,  deposeth  and  saith  :  '  On  the  day  before  the  battle  with 
Bogart,  I  was  in  Far  West ;  and  early  in  the  morning,  Daniel  Carn, 
one  of  the  defendants  here,  asked  me  to  help  him  grease  his  wagon. 
I  did  so,  and  asked  him  where  he  was  going.  He  said  iie  was  going 
out  to  Mr.  Raglin's,  in  Daviess  , county ;  that  there  were  about 
FORTY  bee-stands  THERE,  that  they  iccre  going  for.  Directly  after, 
I  was  at  Morrison's  store,  in  Far  West.  There  was  a  company  of 
ten  or  a  dozen  men  there,  with  two  or  three  wagons.  I  heard  Mr. 
Huntington  ask  for  brimstone.  Some  of  the  company  said  they  had 
two  pounds.  Huntington  answered  that  would  do.  Mr.  Hunter, 
of  the  defendants,  here  gave  the  word  of  command,  and  they 
marched  off,  —  Mr.  Daniel  Carn  with  his  wagon  with  them.  Late 
that  evening,  I  saw  Mr.  Cam's  wagon  at  his  grocery  door,  in  Far 
West.  I  saw  Carn  and  Huntington  unloading  it.  It  was  loaded 
with  one  bee-gum  and  household  stuff,  consisting  of  beds  or  brd- 
clothes,  KINDER  tied  up  ;  also  there  were  onions  in  the  wagon.  Mr. 
Carn,  that  evening,  remarked,  that  there  would  be  in,  that  night,  a 
considerable  number  of  sheep  and  cattle  ;  and  further  remarked,  that 
it  looked  to  him  sometimes  that  it  was  not  right  to  take  plunder,  but 
that  it  was  according  to  the  directions  of  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  and  that 
teas  the  reason  why  he  did  it.  The  next  morning,  I  saw  a  considerable 
number  of  sheep  on  tlie  square  in  Far  West,  —  near  about  one  hun- 
dred !    I  then  left  Far  West,  and  returned  home,  (in  the  east  part  of 


EVIDENCE    GIVEN    BEFORE    JUDGE    KING.  337 

Caldwell  county,)  having  been  summoned  to  Far  West  by  my  militia 
captain,  but  performed  no  military  duties  while  there. 

'"And  further  this  deponent  saith  not.         Allen  Rathbun.'  " 


"Andrezc  J.  Job,  a  witness  for  the  State,  produced,  sworn,  and  ex- 
amined, deposeth  and  saith  :  '  While  the  Mormon  troops  were  in 
Daviess  county,  in  the  last  expedition,  I  was  taken  prisoner  by 
Captain  Fearnought,  (as  he  was  called,)  who,  I  have  since  learned, 
was  a  Mr.  Patten"  While  they  were  getting  me  into  'Diahmon  about 
midnight,  I  passed  on  between  Millport  and  that  place,  and  counted 
ten  houses  on  fire. 

'"After  I  left  'Diahmon,  I  went  to  my  step-mother's,  and  made 
efforts  to  get  out  of  the  ccnnty.  After  the  Mormons  surrendered  at 
'Diahmon" to  the  militia,  I  went  with  my  step-mother  to  'Diahmon,  to 
hunt  for  her  property,  which  had  been  left  at  the  house  when  she 
moved,  and  which  was  missing  on  her  return,  —  such  as  beds,  bed- 
clothing,  knives  and  forks,  a  trunk,  &c.  On  examination,  we  found 
at  the  house  of  Lvman  Wight,  and  upon  his  bedstead,  a  feather  bed, 
which  I  KNEW  to  be  the  one  left  by  her  at  the  time  she  fled  from 
the  Mormons.  1  knew  the  bed  from  its  appearance  ;  the  tick  was 
striped  and  pieced  at  the  end,  and  the  stripes  of  the  piece  turned 
crosswise  ;  also,  wo  found  in  Wight's  house  a  set  of  knives  and  forks, 
which  /  knew  were  the  same  left  at  her  house,  as  above  stated.  My 
step-mother  left  her  residence,  (in  two  miles  of 'Diahmon,)  where 
she  left  the  above  articles,  on  Wednesday  before  I  was  taken  pris- 
oner, which  was  on  the  Sunday-  night  after  ;  and  when  at  'Diahmon, 
the  night  I  was  a  prisoner,  I  slept  on  that  same  bed,  as  I  believed  it 
to  be,  at  one  Sloan's,  as  I  understood  his  name  to  be.  When  my 
step-mother  left  her  home  near  'Diahmon,  where  the  above  articles 
were  left,  she  went  into  the  lower  part  of  Daviess ;  to  which  place  1 
went  when  turned  loose  as  a  prisoner.  My  father's  name  is  Rob- 
ert Job. 

"  'And  further  tliis  deponent  saith  not.  his 

'"Andrew  J.  X  Job.'" 
mark. 


'^Burr  Riggs,  a  witness  for  the  State,  produced,  sworn,  and  exam- 
ined, deposeth  and  saith  : 

*  "  *       u  I  While  in  'Diahmon,  I  saw  a  great  deal  of 

plunder  brought  in,  consisting  of  beds  and  bed-clothes ;  I  also  saw 
one  clock,  and  I  saw  thirty-six  head  of  cattle  drove  in,  and  put  into  a 
pen.  All  the  above  property  was  called  consecrated  property ;  and  I 
heard  John  L.  Butler,  one  of  the  Mormons  who  was  engaged  in 
assisting  to  drive  the  cattle  in,  say  that  they  had  taken  the  cattle 
from  the  citizens  of  the  Grindstone  Fork  ;  and  said  he  had  made  a 
valuable  expedition.  I  saw  Ebenezer  Robinson  there,  who  had  a 
gun-barrel  in  his  hand.  I  asked  him  where  he  got  it,  and  he  told 
29 


«* 


338  HISTORY    OF    THE    SAINTS. 

me  that  the  evening  before  he  had  set  a  barn  on  jire,  and  that  he 
heard  the  gun  go  off  while  the  house  was  burning,  and  he  went 
back  and  got  the  barrel  out  of  tlie  ruins  of  tlie  barn. 


to 


"  Two  or  three  days  before  the  surrender  of  the  Mormons  to  the 
militia  at  Far  West,  I  heard  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  say  that  the  sword  v/as 
now  unsheathed,  and  should  not  again  be  sheathed  until  he  could 
go  through  these  United  States,  and  live  in  any  county  he  pleased, 
peaceably.  I  heard  this  from  him,  also,  before  the  last  expedition 
to  Daviess,  when  Gallatin  and  Millport  were  burnt,  as  well  as  after- 
vwards,  and  I  heard  it  on  several  occasions. 

"  'And  further  this  deponent  saith  not.  Burr  Riggs.'  " 


'■'■John  Whitmer,  a  witness  for  the  State,  produced,  sworn,  and  ex- 
amined, deposeth  and  saith  :  'About  the  17th  of  April  last,  at  a  meet- 
ing of  perha|)s  fifteen  or  twenty-five,  in  Far  West,  Joseph  Smith,  Jr., 
spoke  in  reference  to  difficulties  tliey  had,  and  their  persecutions, 
&c.,  in  and  out  of  the  church.  Mr.  Smith  said,  he  did  not  intend 
in  future  to  have  any  process  served  on  him,  and  the  otficer  who 
attempted  it  should  die;  that  any  person  who  spoke  or  acted  against 
tlie  Presidency  or  the  Church  should  leave  the  country  or  die ;  that 
he  would  sutfer  no  such  to  remain  there ;  that  they  should  lose  their 
head. 

"  'Among  others,  1  conversed  with  Alanson  Ripley.  I  spoke 
of  the  supremacy  of  the  laws  of  the  land,  and  the  necessity  of,  at  all 
times,  being  governed  by  them.  He  replied  that,  as  to  the  techni- 
cal niceties  of  the  law  of  the  land,  he  did  not  intctid  to  regard  them; 
that  the  kingdom,  spoken  of  hy  the  prophet  Diinicl  had  been  set  tip, 
and  that  it  was  necessary  every  kingdom  should  be  governed  by  its 

own   laws.      I   also    conversed   with   ,  on    the    same 

subject,  who  answered,  (when  I  spoke  of  being  governed  by  the 
laws,  and  their  supremacy.)  "When  God  spoke,  he  must  be  obeyed," 
whetlier  his  word  came  in  contact  with  tlie  laws  of  the  land  or  not ; 
and  that,  as  the  kingdom  spoken  of  by  Daniel  had  been  set  up,  its 
laws  must  be  obeyed.  I  told  him  1  thought  it  was  contrary  to  the 
laws  of  the  land  to  drive  men  from  their  homes ;  to  which  he  re- 
plied, such  things  had  been  done  of  old,  and  that  the  gathering  of 
the  Saints  must  continue,  and  that  dissenters  could  not  live  among 
them  in  peace. 

" '  1  also  conversed  with  Mr.  J.  Smith,  Jr.,  on  this  subject.  I  told 
him  I  wished  to  allay  the  (then)  excitement,  as  far  as  I  could  do  it. 
He  said,  the  excitement  was  very  high,  and  he  did  not  know  what 
would  allay  it ;  but  remarked,  he  would  give  me  liis  opinion,  which 
was,  tiiat  if  I  would  put  my  property  into  the  hands  of  the  Bishop 
and  High  Council,  to  be  disposed  of  according  to  the  latrs  of  the 
ChurcJi,  he  thought  that  would  allay  it,  and  that  the  Church,  ailer  a 


EVIDENCE    GIVEN   BEFORE    JUDGE    KING.  339 

while,  might  liave  confidence  in  me.  I  replied  to  him,  I  wislicd  to 
control  my  own  property.  In  telling  Mr.  Smith  that  I  wished  to  he 
governed  by  the  laws  of  the  land,  he  answered,  "  Now,  you  wish  to 
pin  me  down  to  the  law." 

" '  And  further  this  deponent  saith  not. 

'"John  Whitmer.' " 


"  George  W.  Worthinglon,  a  witness  on  behalf  of  the  State,  pro- 
duced, sworn,  and  examined,  deposeth  and  saith  :  '  It  was  on  Thurs- 
day, about  the  18th  day  of  October  last,  tliat  Gallatin  was  taken  by 
tlie  Mormons.  I  reside  in  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  of  town.  About 
one  hundred  Mormons,  commanded  by  Captain  Patten,  as  I  have 
since  learned,  rushed  into  town  ;  seven  or  eight  of  the  citizens  were 
there,  who  immediately  fled.  A  portion  of  the  Mormons  (about 
fifty)  surrounded  my  house.  They  took  a  horse,  saddle,  and  bridle 
out  of  my  yard,  belonging  to  John  A.  Williams,  of  Daviess  county. 
They  attempted  to  take  my  mare  also,  but  ultimately  agreed  to  let 
me  have  her  ;  but  they  took  my  gun.  I  wished  to  know  tlie  name  of 
the  man  who  got  it,  so  that  I  might  get  it  at  some  future  day.  Tlie 
captain  told  me  I  need  not  ask  for  names;  for  they  would  not 
be  given ;  they  then  all  went  up  into  town,  as  they  said,  to  attend 
to  that  store  ;  shortly  after,  three  or  four  of  them  returned  to  my 
house  again  ;  and  one  of  them  was  Joel  S.  Miles,  one  of  the  de- 
fendants here ;  they  came  after  a  Mormon  girl,  who  was  at  my 
house ;  and  they  told  me  that,  if  I  belonged  to  neither  party,  I  had 
better  put  off,  and  take  the  best  of  my  property  with  me.  After 
they  left,  I  went  up  into  town,  to  see  after  some  books,  notes,  and 
accounts,  I  had  up  in  town ;  but  could  not  get  hold  of  them,  as  they 
had  been  taken.  I  met  with  one  of  the  company,  some  distance  from 
Stolling's  store,  who  told  me  if  I  would  go  to  'Diahmon,  I  could  get 
them,  as  well  as  a  coat-pattern,  which  had  also  been  taken.  This 
person  advised  me  to  go  to  'Diahmon  or  Far  West  for  protection.  I 
turned  off  from  him  to  return  home.  I  looked  towards  the  store- 
house, and  saw  the  smoke  in  the  roof;  and  in  a  short  time  the 
flames  burst  out  of  the  top  of  the  house.  I  thougiit  it  best  then  for 
me  to  put  out,  seeing  they  were  burning.  It  alarmed  me,  and  I 
fixed,  and  did  start,  that  evening,  leaving  something  like  $700  worth 
of  properly  in  mtf  house.  After  I  left,  mij  house  teas  burnt,  and  the 
property  gone.  Since  then,  I  have  seen  some  of  my  property  in  a 
vacant  house  in  'Diahmon  ;  some  in  a  storehouse  ;  some  in  a  house 
said  to  be  Bishop  Knight's ;  all  in  'Diahmon.  These  articles  con- 
sisted of  a  clock,  two  glass  jars,  a  box-coat,  a  paper  of  screws, 
some  paints,  a  canister  of  turpentine,  and  some  planes,  chisels, 
squares,  &c.     *     «     » 

"  'And  further  this  deponent  saith  not. 

'"  Geo.  W.  Worthington.'  " 


"  Patrick  Lynch,  a  witness  for  the  State,  produced,  sworn,  and  ex- 
amined, deposeth  and  saith:  '  I  was  living  in  Gallatin,  a  clerk  in 
Stolling's  store,  when  the  Mormons  took  that  place,  which  was  about 


340  HISTORY   OF   THE   SAINTS. 

the  middle  of  October  last.  When  the  Mormons  had  approached  to 
within  fifty  or  one  hundred  yards  of  the  storehouse,  I  left,  having 
first  locked  the  door,  and  deposited  the  key  in  my  pocket.  I  ran 
into  the  brush,  between  one  hundred  and  two  hundred  yards  of  the 
storehouse,  where  I  saw  them  taking  the  goods  from  the  house ; 
some  were  packed  off  on  horses  ;  and  after  that,  when  near  half  a 
mile  off,  I  saw  wagons,  apparently  loaded,  which  I  believed  to  be 
goods  from  the  store.  I  have  found  a  number  of  articles  taken  from 
the  store  in  'Diahmon,  since  the  surrender  of  arms  there  by  the  Mor- 
mons—  such  as  tin- ware,  painted  muslin,  a  piece  of  bleached  do- 
mestic, a  piece  of  brown  cloth,  a  lady's  cloak,  three  pair  of  scales, 
and  a  part  of  two  sets  of  weights,  a  leger  and  three  day-books,  and 
the  notes  of  hand  to  the  amount  of  perhaps  $300,  were  taken  from 
the  store.  The  books  have  not  been  recovered,  but  the  notes  I  found 
in  the  house  of  Bishop  Knight^  at  'Diahmon,  in  the  possession  of  his 
wife,  except  such  notes  as  were  on  Mormons ;  these  we  have  not 
recovered.  In  about  three  hours  after  the  Mormons  took  Gallatin, 
I  returned,  and  found  the  storehouse  burnt.  The  post-office  and 
treasurer's  office  were  kept  in  the  storeliouse,  and  the  records,  pa- 
pers, &c.,  belonging  to  each,  were  either  taken  off  by  the  Mormons 
or  consumed  by  the  fire. 

"  '  And  further  this  deponent  saith  not. 

"  '  Patrick  Lynch.'  " 


REMARKS  BY  WAY  OF  ADDENDUM. 

The  moiety  of  testimony  now  in  my  possession  is  here 
closed,  and  I  rest  the  case  with  the  public.  The  evidence 
is  conclusive  on  all  points,  and  the  facts  are  sustained  by 
unimpeachable  witnesses.  The  reliance  of  the  Mormons 
on  BRIBED  and  PERJURED  witnesses ;  their  confidence 
in  the  falsehoods  of  R.  D.  Foster,  "that  notable  liar, 
scoundrel,  and  villain,"  as  General  Robinson  calls  him; 
their  excommunication  {letters  of  Marqiie  and  Repri- 
sal) of  Colonel  Orson  Pratt,  simply  because  he  defended 
his  innocent  and  abused  wife  against  the  calumnies  of 
Baal  ;  their  heralding  and  trumpeting  forth  the  wild  and  in- 
coherent sayings  of  Miss  Eliza  Rigdon,  uttered  during  her 
recent  severe  sickness,  when  she  was  perfectly  delirious, — 
(laboring  under  mental  hallucination  at  the  acme  of  con- 
secutive exacerbations  of  high  febrile  and  cerebral  excite- 
ment, consequent  upon  an  attack  o{  Pneumonia  Typhoides,) 
knowing  that  by  the  declarations  of  so  good  and  pious  a 


ADDENDUM.  341 

young  lady,  made  under  any  circumstances,  they  could 
gull  and  stultify  the  credulous  portion  of  community,  and 
thus  for  a  time  bolster  up  the  Mormon  imposture;  their 
recent  vile  and  abusive  attacks,  as  published  in  "The 
Wasp,"  of  September  3,  1843,  on  General  James  Gordon 
Bennett,  the  "  Napoleon"  Editor  of  the  New  York  Herald, 
for  the  only  reason  that  he  had  indulged  in  a  little  pleas- 
antry in  relation  to  their  Prophet,  when  at  the  same  time 
they  are  under  the  most  marked  obligations  to  him  for 
past  favors;  their  contemptible,  absurd,  and  vituperative, 
publications  against  Moses  Y.  Beach,  Esq.,  the  Lion  Editor 
of  the  New  York  Sun;  their  calumnies  and  slanderous 
bulletins  against  Messrs.  Sharp,  Bartlett,  and  Davis,  the 
accomplished  Editors  of  the  Warsaw  Signal,  Q.uincy  Whig, 
and  Alton  Telegraph;  their  attempts  to  wrest  the  Nauvoo 
post-office  from  Sidney  Rigdon,  Esq.,  the  present  incum- 
bent, by  false  representations  to  the  Department,  in  order 
to  enable  them  to  purloin  and  suppress  my  communica- 
tions; their  great  umbrage  at  Mr.  Rigdon  because  he  will 
not  perjure  himself  to  relieve  their  Hyena  Joe  from  his 
quandary  in  the  case  of  Nancy  ;  their  system  of  duplicity, 
usurpation,  and  fraud,  in  the  cases  of  Oliver  H.  Olney,  F. 
G.  Bishop,  and  others;  th^ir  violent  abuse  of  every  person 
who  has  the  honesty  and  MORAL  COURAGE  to  expose 
their  iniquities  ;  with  hundreds  of  other  reasons  that  might 
be  urged,  —  all  go  to  show  that  barefaced  lying,  per- 
jury, FRAUD,  and  CORRUPTION,  (cdupled  with  MURDER, 
according  to  other  evidence,)  are  their  dernier  ressort,  to 
save  themselves  from  infamy  and  disgrace,  and  in  relation 
to  which  they  have  no  more  scruples  of  conscience  than  the 
wandering  Arab,  or  the  degraded  Hottentot.  They  have 
made  lies  their  refuge,  and  under  falsehood  have  they  hid 
themselves.  All  I  ask  is  a  careful  perusal  of  this  Expose, 
and  a  critical  examination  of  the  testimony.  The  case  is 
now  respectfully  submitted. 


CONTENTS. 


Page. 
I'reface, 3 

Reasons  for  joining  the  Mormons, 5 

Character  of  the  Author, 10 

Inauffural  Address, 20 

Mormon  Testimony, 26 

Laying  the  Corner-Stone  of  the  Temple, 27 

Rules  of  City  Council, 35 

Withdrawal  from  the  Church, 40 

Vote  of  Thanks, 42 

Correspondence, 44 

Opinions  of  the  Newspaper  Press, 49 

Joe  Smith  —  his  Claims  and  Character, 57 

F.  Brewer's  Testimony, 85 

G.  B.  Frost's  Testimony, 86 

Joe  Smith,  William  Law,  and  John  Taylor, 87 

Joe's  Bankrupt  Application, 96 

Book  of  Mormon  —  its  Origin,  etc., 103 

Claims  and  Absurdities  of  the  Book  of  Mormon, 124 

Absurdities  and  Contradictions  of  the  Book  of  Covenants, 128 

Mormon  Paradise, 131 

History  of  the  Mormons, 133 

The  Designs  of  Mormonism, 140 

Organization  and  Doctrine  of  the  Mormons, 162 

Remarkable  Events, 174 

Phrenological  Charts, 180 

Description  of  Nauvoo, 1S9 

\Charters,  Ordinances,  etc., 193 

City  Officers, 205 

University, 210 

Lotion, 211 


344  CONTENTS. 

Page. 

The  Call, 214 

The  Seraglio, 217 

Amours,  etc.  etc., 226 

Mrs.  Sarah  M.  Pratt, 226 

Mrs.  Emeline  White, " 234 

Miss  Martha  H.  Brotherton, 236 

Miss  Nancy  Rigdon, .241 

Widow  Fuller,  now  Mrs.  Warren, '. 253 

Widow  Miller, 255 

^'Incidental  Reflections, 257 

Daughter  ofZion, 265 

Destroying  Angel, 268 

Order  Lodge, 272 

Milking  the  Gentiles, 278 

Assassination  and  Attempted  Assassinations, 279 

Mr.  John  Stephenson, 279 

Governor  Boggs, 281 

The  Duress  and  Attempted  Murder  of  the  Author, 287 

Contemplated  Mormon  Empire, 293 

An  Appeal  to  the  Public, 302 

Extracts  from  a  Missouri  Document, 307 

Evidence  given  before  Judge  Kmg, 324 

Remarks  by  way  of  Addendum, 340 


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